Learning To Fall
by LunarEclipse360
Summary: They were enemies since the day she set foot in East High. Gabriella Montez hated Troy Bolton and vise versa. No one knew why they hated each other, the origin was a mystery. Is there a reason behind it?
1. Chapter 1

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: I don't own_**

**A/N: so this is one of the new stories I was mentioning before. I will have a banner for it soon but not right now. This has actually been sitting on my computer for a month now so I thought 'why not let my readers take a look at it.' This basically the story of he hates her and she hates him and one falls for the other. I find stories like this one to be interesting. Sure they're cliche but they keep you interested. So enjoy my new story. This one I will most likely update before the others because the first four chapters are already typed up.**

_Chapter 1_

Monday morning. First new day of the week. It's supposed to be quiet and collective as people awake from the weekend drawl. Students at East High in Albuquerque, New Mexico were just arriving on various yellow school buses, wishing that they could be back in their beds, sleeping. A loud scream, however, woke them all up leaving them to look at each other, wondering what happened.

Inside the school building stood seventeen year old Gabriella Montez with fire in her eyes and the urge to kill burning through her body. She stared at her defaced locker in shock as the students around her whispered.

"Okay nothing to see here." said Taylor McKessie, Gabriella's best friend, as she broke up the crowd that hovered around her best friend's locker. She sighed once everyone had dispersed and turned to Gabriella. "He's really gone too far."

"Oh I'll say. Wait till I see him. I'm going to strangle him till he begs for mercy."

"I hope you're not talking about me?" her blood boiled over as she turned around. Standing a few feet away was Troy Bolton, captain of the East High Wildcats basketball team and the bane of Gabriella's existence, with an amused smirk on his face.

"What the hell Bolton? Why did you do this..." she showed him her ruined locker "to my locker."

"Who says I did it?" he asked as he pushed off the locker he had been leaning on and walked over to her.

"Who _else_ could have done it?" she asked through gritted teeth.

"Oh I don't know. But I assure you I didn't." she was just about to jump on him and choke the life out of him but the sound of Principal Matsui's voice stopped her.

"Miss Montez can you explain this to me?" she turned around, getting a good look at the angry expression on his face.

"Mr. Matsui I didn't do it. I just came in this morning and it was like this."

"It's true Mr. Matsui. I walked in with Gabriella and it was here when we got here." Taylor spoke up, defending her best friend.

"Well if you didn't then who did?"

"I don't know." Gabriella said 'But I have a pretty good idea of who it was.' she thought to herself, her mind going to the boy that stood behind her. Mr. Matsui nodded, accepting Gabriella's story and sighed.

"I hope it doesn't happen again." he said and walked away. Just because he accepted her story doesn't mean that he believed her. She sighed in relief and closed her locker.

"Aww how sweet." Troy said and she sneered at him.

"What are you going on about?" she began walking in the opposite direction of him but he moved in front of her.

"You didn't try to rat me out."

"So what? Are you admitting that you did deface my locker?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"You're too smart for your own good, Montez. Of course I did. No one loves to annoy you more than me." a sly smirk slipped on her face and he looked at her with confusion in his eyes.

"That's all I wanted to hear."

"Mr. Bolton." came Principal Matsui's voice and Troy cringed.

"You set me up." he whispered before turning around. "Mr. Matsui..."

"My office now." Troy nodded before turning back to Gabriella.

"You're gonna pay for this Montez."

"I said _now_ Mr. Bolton" Troy turned his head to Principal Matsui and smiled sarcastically before turning to Gabriella's smiling face.

"Buh-bye." Gabriella said, waving, as Principal Matsui grabbed Troy's shoulder. Troy glared at Gabriella as he was dragged down the hallway. "Now that was some good entertainment." she said to Taylor before grabbing her arm and heading off to homeroom.

Troy sat in Principal Matsui's office, listening to him go on about being a better person. Of course Troy wasn't exactly listening, he was too busy trying to think up ways to get back at Gabriella.

"Mr. Bolton are you even listening to me?"

"Huh? Yeah." Principal Matsui sighed and walked over to the teenage boy.

"If it wasn't for the fact that you are captain of the basketball team, I would suspend you but I'm not. Instead I'm going to make you repaint Gabriella's locker."

"What? Why?"

"Well you were the one who defaced it so it's only fitting that you repaint it." Troy groaned and sunk into his seat. "You have a problem with that Mr. Bolton?"

"No sir."

"Good then get to class." Troy got out of his seat and walked out of the office. He made his way to his homeroom taking his seat in the front of the room.

"Dude you okay?" asked his best friend, Chad Danforth.

"No. That bitch Montez got me in trouble."

"You mean from what you did to her locker?"

"Yeah. Now I gotta repaint it."

"Damn."

"I need someway to get her back."

"Why?"

"Because when I told her that I did it, Principal Matsui was standing right behind me and she knew it."

"Wow. Sneaky."

"I know." the sound of her laughter reached his ears and he turned around. His blue eyes found her smiling face and he rolled his eyes. "She can laugh all she wants now. She'll get hers soon enough."

"Miss Montez can you come here for one second?" called Ms. Darbus and Gabriella got up out of her seat to walk to the front. A sly grin found it's way to Troy's face and he stuck out his foot just as Gabriella was walking past him. She tripped over his foot and landed on the floor. Everyone in the class broke out into laughter and she glared up at him.

"Oops." he said, a grin still on his face. She stood up and turned to him.

"It's okay." she said and got up. "I can't blame you for being mentally challenged." the class broke out in 'oohs' and he gave her a hard glare. She grinned and continued to walk up to the front of the class. As she walked back to her seat, she specifically heard him say 'bitch' "Ass"

"Slut."

"Bastard."

"_Enough_" Ms. Darbus yelled. "I'm tired of hearing you two go at it everyday. Detention for the both of you."

"But Ms. Darbus..."Gabriella interjected.

"No buts Miss Montez. You're going to serve detention." Gabriella huffed and went to her seat. Troy smirked, even though he too had to serve detention, this would give him another chance to get even.


	2. Chapter 2

**Learning To Fall**

_**Disclaimer: I own not a single thing**_

**A/N: I like the response that this story has received. Thanks so much guys. I'm working on chapter 29 of _Beautiful Disaster_ it should be out soon.**

_Chapter 2_

Gabriella walked into the auditorium after school, not looking forward to spending an hour and a half with Troy. She took a seat in the far corner of the auditorium, hoping to stay as far away from Troy as possible. As she settled in, she took out an unfinished book and began reading, praying that it would pass the time.

Troy walked into the auditorium minutes later, spotting Gabriella's form at the far end of the auditorium. He smirked and walked over to where she was, taking a seat beside her.

"Go away." she said, not taking her eyes off the book.

"And pass up a chance to annoy you? No way." she rolled her eyes and went back to reading. He moved to the seat in front of her and stared at her until she lowered the book.

"Can I help you?"

"Yea. Can you wear a mask from now on? Your face is disturbing."

"Maybe if you stopped staring you wouldn't have to worry about it."

"I can't help it. It's so ugly it's distracting."

"Go fuck yourself." she said and went back to reading.

"I would but there's nothing to jerk off to. You're too ugly to make me hard."

"Ugh. Asshole." he smirked and moved to a seat a few rows ahead of her. I wasn't long before something solid hit the back of his head.

"Fuck." he cursed and looked down at the row behind him. There on the floor was a small dictionary. He looked up at Gabriella and she gestured for him to open it. He picked it up and opened it. On the first page was a yellow sticky note that held a sentence.

_Here's a dictionary. Learn a few new words. Maybe you won't be such an ass if you expand your vocabulary._

_P.S. Look up the word dictionary so that way you can know what this is for._

Troy looked up at her, a smile playing on her lips. He sneered at her then turned around.

"Ah good you're both here." Ms. Darbus said as she walked towards them. "I have some work for you two to do. Come, come." they stood from their seats and followed Ms. Darbus on stage. "I need all of this painted." she said pointing to the background. "You two will paint it and you will like it."

"Yes Ms. Darbus." they said at the same time.

"Good now get to work." each grabbed a brush and began painting the background. "I'll be back in forty-five minutes to let you two go." Ms. Darbus said and turned to leave. "Oh and please let me see both of you still alive when I get back." she left and the second the door closed, Troy dropped his brush.

"Well that's my cue to leave." he said and went back to where his stuff was.

"You can't just leave." Gabriella said.

"I can and I will. Later Montez." Gabriella stared at him with an incredulous look on her face.

"No. No way." she said and rushed in front of him so he wouldn't leave. "No way am I doing this by myself."

"It won't be that bad. I mean look at it this way at least you won't have to see me and I won't have to see your ugly face until tomorrow." she glared at him, the 'ugly face' part getting to her.

"No. You're not getting off this easy. No matter if I won't have to see you until tomorrow or not. I'm not doing this whole thing on my own."

"You'll get over it princess. I promise you will." he pushed past her and left the auditorium. She sighed and turned back to the background she had to paint. She groaned and ran a hand through her hair.

'This is going to be a long forty-five minutes' she thought to herself before going back on stage to start painting.

Exactly forty-five minutes later, Ms. Darbus strolled into the auditorium. By this time Gabriella thought her arms were going to fall off. Ms. Darbus stared at the brunette who was situated on the floor before looking around.

"Where's Mr. Bolton?"

"He had to leave early. He said something about a family emergency."

"That's weird. I just saw Jack but he didn't say anything to me."

"I don't think they want anyone knowing just yet." Ms. Darbus nodded and sighed.

"Alright well you can go." Gabriella nodded and stood up.

'Bolton owes me big time.' Gabriella thought as she went to gather her things. She walked out of the auditorium and out of the school building. She knew all the buses were gone and she didn't feel like calling her mother so Gabriella decided to walk home.

"I hope you didn't rat me out." she heard just as she turned to walk down the street. She looked towards the curb and saw Troy leaning against his car with a smirk on his face.

"No I didn't rat you out but you owe me big time Bolton."

"Will a ride home settle things?" she thought about it for a second before answering.

"Maybe."

"Maybe? Well how about maybe I don't give you a ride home and you can walk your ass all the way there?" she sighed and shook her head.

"Okay. Okay. We're even." he grinned and nodded.

"Alright. Get in." he said and walked over to the driver's side. She walked to the passenger side and climbed in at the same time he did. He revved up his car and drove away from the school. Gabriella stayed quiet the entire ride. She didn't want to say something that might get her kicked out of the car. He pulled up to her driveway minutes later and she looked at him.

"Thanks for the ride. I really appreciated it."

"Yea. Yea. Don't get all emotional on me. Now get out before I have to drag you out."

"You can't be nice for one second can you?"

"Can you please get out of my car? There, that nice enough for you?" she rolled her eyes and got out of his car. She slammed the door behind her and walked up to her door, all the while he drove away. Gabriella glanced back and watched him leave. She couldn't believe how rude he was. She shook her head and walked inside of her house.

"Mom I'm home."

"Hey Gabi. Where were you?"

"Uh study group." she lied and started up to her room.

"Okay well dinner will be ready in five minutes."

"Kay." Gabriella ran up to her room and dropped her bag on the floor before flopping on her bed. Seconds later her cell phone rang and she reached into her pocket to answer it. "Hello?"

"Hey Gabs it's Taylor."

"Oh hey Tay. What's up?"

"How was detention with Mr. Pretty Boy."

"He bailed on me."

"What?"

"Yeah he left once Ms. Darbus knew he was there."

"What a jackass."

"I know and I had to cover for him."

"Did you?"

"Well yeah."

"What? Why?"

"I don't know I just did. But there was an upside to not telling on him."

"And what was that?"

"He gave me a ride home."

"So he came back to school just to give you a ride home?"

"Honestly I think he never left the school grounds. I think he was waiting to see if I'd rat him out or not."

"Desperate much."

"I know."

"Gabriella dinner's ready." her mother called from downstairs and Gabriella sighed.

"I gotta go Tay. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Okay. Later Gabi."

"Later." Gabriella ended the call and headed downstairs.


	3. Chapter 3

**Learning To Fall**

**_Disclaimer: I didn't own it 10 months ago, why would I own it now._**

**A/N: I just finished my English research paper but I still have a health paper to do so _Beautiful Disaster_ will have to wait to be updated. I'm pissed off at Zashley supporters right now, well some of them. Everywhere I look on youtube there's some stupid shit about people saying Zashley is better than Zanessa. _Hello_, Zashley doesn't exist. Stop supporting something that isn't. If you're going to support it, support it underground cause seriously, you sound stupid openly supporting something that doesn't exist at the moment. Troypay I can take but Zashley...just stop. If they really love Ashley then why don't they support her and Jared since Jashley actually exists. I'm also pissed off at those people who keep saying that Zac and Vanessa broke up. They did not break up people. Stop listening to the stupid rumors and go to sources that are actually reliable. Excuse my rant but those people on youtube got me heated. If you're a Zashley lover that actually respects the fact that Zanessa exists then you can ignore this. It's only for those that refuse to acknowledge the couple just because they don't like Vanessa. I like Ashley and if he was going out with Ashley I would support it but since he's not I'm not.**

_Chapter 3_

Troy walked into school the next day with his head held high. Girls from each side of the hallway smiled and waved at him. He, in turn, smiled and winked. As he reached his locker, he spotted Principal Matsui standing in front of it. He sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Ah Mr. Bolton. I'm glad I got here before you."

"Morning Mr. Matsui." Troy said as he opened his locker.

"I have some paint prepared for you today. I expect you to repaint Ms. Montez's locker. If I find that it's not repainted then I will suspend you, basketball captain or not."

"Yes sir."

"Good. Then I'll see you after school."

"But I have practice."

"I know. Your father already agreed to letting you miss practice for it." Troy sighed and nodded as he closed his locker.

"Of course." Principal Matsui nodded then walked away. Troy groaned and walked to homeroom. The second he walked in, he ran into someone and stumbled backwards. "What the...?" he saw Gabriella recollecting herself in front of him and smirked. "Oh it's just you."

"I'm not surprised you wouldn't say sorry."

"You ran into me."

"I did not."

"Did too."

"Did not."

"Unless you two want to serve detention again, I suggest you two stop now." Ms. Darbus said and the two shut up. Gabriella went back to her seat and Troy went to his.

"Dude I saw Mr. Matsui standing in front of your locker this morning. What happened?" Chad asked as Troy took his seat.

"I have to repaint the princess' locker after school."

"But what about practice?"

"My dad's letting me skip practice for it."

"Well that's just great." Chad said sarcastically.

"I know. It totally sucks."

"Mr. Bolton, Mr. Danforth you may talk on your own time but please don't waste mine." Ms. Darbus said and the two boys stopped their conversation. "As I was saying, homecoming is in two weeks and I need a few volunteers to help me decorate and get the school in order. Any volunteers." Gabriella and Taylor were the only ones to raise their hands but Ms. Darbus looked at them with appreciation. "Thank you Ms. Montez and Ms. McKessie."

"Should have known." Troy mumbled to Chad making the curly-haired boy snicker.

"Is there something you would like to share with us Mr. Bolton?"

"Well Ms. Darbus I was just telling Chad that I should have known that Montez was going to volunteer to help you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Gabriella asked standing up from her seat.

"It means that you're the world's biggest kiss ass." Troy said not turning to face her.

"At least I'm not the world's biggest jackass." everyone in the class gasped and Troy turned to her.

"A jackass I may be but at least I don't go around the school trying to be a teacher's pet."

"I am not trying to be a teacher's pet."

"Oh that's a convincing argument. You're a nerd, face it. All you think about is schoolwork."

"I do not."

"Sure you don't."

"I don't."

"Mr. Bolton if you open your mouth again I can guarantee that you will be spending the next month in detention." Ms. Darbus intercepted before he could say another word. Troy shut his mouth and turned back around in the seat. "I don't understand you two. You fight for no apparent reason."

"He starts it." Gabriella said and Troy rolled his eyes. "He always decides to pick a fight with me. I'm sick of it and I'm sick of him." Gabriella sat back down in her seat and lowered her head so no one could see her tears. The room stayed silent until the bell rung seconds later. Gabriella quickly picked up her bag and hurried out of the room. Chad walked up behind Troy as they walked out of the room, both their eyes on the retreating brunette.

"Dude, I think you really did it this time."

"Oh well. The little bitch deserves it. She's the reason I have to miss practice."

"You're not going to leave her alone are you?"

"Nope." Chad shook his head and the two boys walked the rest of the way to their first period class in silence.

Gabriella walked into her first period class and sat in her seat. A few minutes later Taylor walked in and took her seat next to her best friend. Taylor looked at Gabriella, who had her head on the desk, with concern written in her brown eyes.

"Gabs are you okay?"

"No." Gabriella said and sat up straight. She brushed the tears from her eyes and looked at Taylor. "I don't get it. Why won't he leave me alone?"

"He's a jerk. Don't worry about him."

"But he always finds some way to get on my last nerve. If I become a serial killer, he's my first victim" Taylor rolled her eyes at her best friend's desperation.

"Just ignore him Gabi. He'll get tired of it eventually and leave you alone." Gabriella nodded and tried to regain her composure before other students walked into the room. Throughout the class, Gabriella tried to keep her mind off of her distress and on her schoolwork. She didn't want to think about Troy's hurtful words, no matter how much they hurt her self-esteem.

The class ended quick than she expected and as she gathered her things, a hand touched her shoulder. She turned around and came face to face with a smiling Ryan Evans, twin brother of the school ice queen, Sharpay Evans.

"Hi Ryan." she said with a smile.

"Hey."

"What's up?" she asked as she turned around to face him.

"I just wanted to see how you were holding up after the argument with Troy. You left the classroom pretty quickly."

"I'm okay. I've decided that I just need to ignore him no matter how much he annoys me."

"That's good. He's nothing but a bully. Guys like him like getting a rise out of people. He just needs to know that he won't get a rise out of you anymore."

"Gabriella you coming." Taylor called and Gabriella turned towards her.

"Be right there." she turned back to Ryan and smiled. "Thanks Ry. I really needed some comforting words."

"Anytime." he said with a smile and her smile grew wider.

"I'll see you around?" he nodded and she left the room with Taylor.


	4. Chapter 4

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: Two words: I. Wish._**

**A/N: I'm so excited. I just brought the two disc special edition dvd of Hairspray. ::sighs::**

**Link Larkin a.k.a. Zac Efron I want to have your children...**

_Chapter 4_

Troy sat in his forth period class, barely paying attention. It was Physics, a subject that Troy found no use for. He didn't understand why he had to take the course. He wanted to just drop the class but it was a requirement for graduation. The bell finally rung and students began filing out of the classroom.

"Mr. Bolton may I speak to you for one second?" asked Mrs. Hughes, his Physics teacher. Troy sighed and walked over to her desk.

"Yes Mrs. Hughes?" he asked and she looked up at him through her fine-rimmed glasses.

"Mr. Bolton I don't know where your head is but you are in danger of failing this class. If you expect to graduate come June, I suggest you find a way to get your grades up. Understand?" Troy nodded and left the room.

"Fuck" he said and punched the nearest stretch of wall. He sighed and walked off to his next period class: gym.

"I really don't understand the concept of this class." Gabriella said as she and Taylor walked out of the girls' locker room, dressed in their gym uniforms.

"It's just another way to keep us healthy."

"But I _suck_ at gym. Especially basketball. I don't know what I'm doing."

"Just go with it Gabriella."

"Oh easy for you to say. You're great at basketball."

"What is the princess complaining about now?" Gabriella looked up at Troy with a menacing stare.

"None of your business _Bolton_." she said and grabbed Taylor's arm. She pulled her best friend around the grinning boy and went to stand with the other girls in their co-ed gym class.

"Okay everyone gather round." said Coach Bolton and everyone made a semi-circle around him. "As you all know we're going to be starting our first game of basketball today so I'm going to be putting all of you into two groups. Half of the group gets to play this class and the other half gets to play next class. My team captains are of course Troy and Chad."

"Of course." Gabriella mumbled and Taylor shook her head.

The two boys moved to stand beside Coach Bolton and called out the names of the people they wanted on their teams. Gabriella ended up being the last one left, a situation she was all too used to. Troy was next to pick and sighed, knowing that he had to pick her.

"Montez let's go." she reluctantly walked over to his team and stood beside a group of people she never talked to before.

"Okay first halves let's get this game going." Coach Bolton called before blowing his whistle. Gabriella became part of the first half of the team with Troy leading. She really did not want to play but had no choice.

Throughout the game, Gabriella made mistake after mistake, gaining some looks from those on her team. Especially from their team captain. Troy looked, disdainfully at Gabriella as her mistakes continued. Finally Coach Bolton blew his whistle, ending the game and the class.

"What the hell was that?" Troy yelled and walked in front of Gabriella, keeping her from following the rest of the girls into the locker room.

"It was nothing."

"Exactly, it was nothing because you can't do anything."

"I'm horrible at basketball, so what sue me." she moved to walk around him but he quickly blocked her off. "Look Bolton unless you have some solution that will help me become better in basketball I suggest you just let me leave." a bright idea entered Troy's mind and he smiled.

"Actually...I do have a solution." Gabriella looked at him with pure curiosity written on her face. "You're good at Physics right?"

"Yeah...but what does that have to do with anything?"

"If you tutor me in Physics, I'll teach you how to play basketball. So do we have a deal?" he asked and stuck out his hand. Gabriella looked at him then at his hand, contemplating if she really wanted to trust him. In the end, her better judgement got the best of her, knowing that he was the only way she was going to pass gym. She sighed and looked into his eyes.

"Fine." she said and shook his hand.

"Good. We can start tomorrow." he said and walked away from her.

"Wait why not today?" she asked and he turned around.

"Because I have something else to do." he ran off towards the locker room, leaving Gabriella by herself. She sighed and started off towards the girls' locker room.

"So what did Troy say to you this time?" Taylor asked as the two walked to their next period class.

"He actually found a way to help me."

"Are you serious? He's not being selfish?"

"Of course he is, he told me he would help me with gym if I helped him with Physics."

"Should have known. So what's going on with you and Ryan Evans?" Gabriella stopped in her tracks and stared at her friend with surprise.

"What?"

"What? You two seemed all buddy-buddy earlier so I just wanted to know."

"There's nothing going on with me and Ryan. We're just friends."

"Of course you are."

"I'm serious Tay. We're friends and nothing more."

"So you're saying that if he asked you out, you wouldn't say yes?"

"Well I don't know, maybe."

"But you would?"

"Yeah."

"So you do have a thing for him."

"Tay, I did not say that."

"No but you admitted to going out with him if he asked."

"To be nice."

"Uh huh. Sure." Gabriella rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Speaking of Ryan Evans..." Taylor trailed off and the two girls spotted the blonde-haired boy about to walk into their sixth period classroom. He stopped when he spotted them out the corner of his eye and waved at them. They waved back and closed the space between them.

"Hey Gabriella."

"Hey Ry."

"Ladies first." he said and let them enter the classroom. Taylor looked over at Gabriella, sending her a wink. Gabriella rolled her eyes and continued to her seat. A few minutes later, Troy walked into the classroom without taking a glance at the teacher.

"Mr. Bolton you're late." Mr. Wilson said. Troy took his seat and looked at him.

"Sorry about that Mr. Wil, my dad had something he needed to talk to me about." Mr. Wilson nodded before returning to the lesson. Troy smirked, victoriously and looked over at Gabriella who sat two seats away from him. She rolled her eyes, finding that she did that a lot, and looked at the front board. Troy shook his head and turned his attention to the front of the room.

Gabriella took a piece of paper and quickly scribbled down a note before passing it to Taylor behind her.

_How does he always manage to get out of trouble like that?_

Taylor rolled her eyes and wrote an answer before handing it back to Gabriella.

_I don't know. I guess he's just gifted like that._

Gabriella turned around and mouthed out 'right' to Taylor. The dark skinned girl shrugged and Gabriella turned back to the front just as a foreign note hit her desk. She looked at it curiously before slowly picking it up and opening it.

_I know you're talking about me to your friend. I'm flattered that you like talking about me._

Gabriella raised her head, her brown eyes connected with a pair of blue ones looking straight at her. She gave him a disgusted look and he motioned for her to keep reading. She looked back at the note and noticed the print at the bottom.

_I would appreciate it though if you kept my name out of your mouth. Only beautiful girls are aloud to talk about me._ _And you say I don't have an extended vocabulary._

She crumpled up the paper and raised her hand.

"Yes Ms. Montez?" asked Mr. Wilson

"May I use the restroom?"

"Of course." she stood up and as she past Troy's seat, she turned to him and brought her hand down on his cheek, making a loud smack resound through the room and students gasp.

"Bastard." she mumbled before leaving.


	5. Chapter 5

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing..._**

**A/N: okay so as of tomorrow I will be starting my Christmas story that corresponds with the days up until Christmas, meaning the last chapter will be on Christmas. There will however be a follow up one-shot that will be put out on New Years Eve. Sadly I just started chapter 2 but I promise I will get one out everyday. As for _Taking Over Me_, _Beautiful Disaster_, _Anything For You_,and_ Love Song Requiem_ those won't be updated as much, especially _TOM and BD_. I'm trying to update them but so far I haven't been successful. With my Christmas story that has to be out everyday, it's going to be hard. This story, however, I think will be updated more often and if I find time after I finish a chapter for my Christmas story, I will try to update the others. **

Chapter 5

Troy walked out of sixth period, rubbing his cheek. He couldn't believe Gabriella actually had the nerve to hit him. Chad ran up behind him and clapped him on the back.

"Dude I heard what happened. You okay?"

"Oh I'm fine but if Montez thinks she's getting away with that she's wrong."

"You can't hit a girl."

"I know. Who said anything about hitting?" Troy asked with a smirk.

"What are you planning?"

"Revenge. What else?" Troy walked to his locker with Chad following behind him. As Troy stood at his locker, a bunch of girls from his fan club walked up to him.

"Troy are you okay?" asked a blonde.

"That mean Montez girl didn't damage your face did she?" asked a brunette.

"No girls she didn't." They all smiled and he smiled back. "So which one of you wants to sit next to me at lunch."

"Ooo I do," they all yelled and pushed each other for a place under his arm. A red head pushed her way through the crowd and placed herself under Troy's awaiting arm. "Aww," they whined as she stuck out her tongue.

"Too bad girls. Next time," he said and walked off with the red head under his arm. "So beautiful, what's your name?"

"Chanel."

"Beautiful name."

"Thanks." He smiled and they continued to the cafeteria.

Gabriella sat at the lunch table with her head in her hands. She knew she deserved getting a detention for slapping Troy but she wasn't happy about it. This was the second detention she had gotten, ruining her perfect record.

"Hey Gabriella," Taylor said and sat next to her.

"Hey Tay."

"Even though I oppose violence...you slapping Troy was the best thing I've ever seen." Gabriella smiled and shook my head.

"Well save the memory cause that's the last time I'm touching him. I swear I think I got burned from touching that face of his," she said looking her hand over.

"Well I don't think that slap hurt his image at all."

"What makes you say that?" Taylor pointed to the dark haired boy walking into the cafeteria with a red head hanging off of his arm.

"There's nothing stopping him, is there?" Gabriella asked, turning to her best friend. Taylor shook her head and Gabriella sighed.

After lunch, Gabriella and Taylor split ways and Gabriella made her way to her locker. The minute she got there, she found Troy and the red head leaning against it. She sighed in frustration and walked up behind him. She tapped his shoulder but he didn't turn around. She tried again but all he did was wave his hand. She did it a third time and he finally turned around.

"What?" he yelled before seeing the fuming brunette behind him. "Oh." He fixed his position and leaned against the lockers, holding the red head close to him. "It's just you."

"Do you mind? You're blocking my locker." He looked at the locker and smirked

"I knew I noticed that locker from somewhere."

"Of course you did. You're the one who defaced it. Now will you please move. I have to get my stuff out of my locker.

"And I care why?"

"Look either you move or you can forget about me tutoring you..." His eyes widened and he covered her mouth with his hand, stopping her from saying anymore.

"What did she say about tutoring you?" Chanel asked.

"Uh nothing, nothing. She didn't say anything about tutoring me. It's uh...Chad. Chad needs tutoring and she agreed to help him." Gabriella made a noise and he glared at her. "Chanel why don't you go meet me at my locker?"

"Okay," she said and walked away. Troy watched Chanel walk away, his mind focused on the swaying of her hips. He was knocked out of his thoughts when he felt something wet trailing along his palm. That's when he realized Gabriella was licking him and quickly removed his hand.

"Aw gross," he said and wiped his palm off on his jeans.

"It wasn't all that pleasant for me either," Gabriella said making disgusted faces. "Now I'm going to be brushing my tongue for a week just to get your taste out of my mouth."

"I'm going to be washing my hand for _two_ weeks just to get your germs off of my skin." She rolled her eyes and stepped around him to get into her locker. "Look never and I mean _never_ mention that you're going to be tutoring me. If that gets out then everyone will know I'm failing a class and Troy Bolton doesn't fail classes."

"Don't worry I won't say a word. I'd rather be caught wearing a clown suit than tutoring you. Oh and please...don't refer to yourself in the third person. It's annoying and stupid," she said looking for the books she needed for her last two periods.

"Well Troy Bolton doesn't care what you think."

"Just go away. Don't you have a red head to fuck?" she asked and he smirked.

"You're right I do." He leaned in closer to her and she froze. "She's a lot more fun than you," he whispered and walked away from her. Gabriella glared daggers into his retreating form before turning back to her locker.

The end of the day came quicker than anyone expected. Gabriella slowly but surely made her way to the detention room, shock coming over her when she saw the poor souls, more like soul, that had to serve it with her.

"Montez come in, have a seat," Troy said, his feet propped up on the desk, a smug grin on his face.

"Bolton," she grumbled and took a seat in the far corner. She crossed her arms on the desk and laid her head down.

"So will this second detention teach you not to slap me?" he asked as he appeared in the seat in front of her. She jolted her head up at his voice and grumbled.

"Oh don't worry. I'm never touching you again," she said, leaning back against her chair and crossing her arms.

"That's good. I don't want you touching me anyway."

"Mr. Bolton," came the voice of Principal Matsui and Troy rolled his eyes before turning around.

"Yes Mr. Matsui."

"I sent you in here because you refused to repaint Ms. Montez' locker, not to talk to her."

"And I told you I refused to repaint it because she slapped me."

"You deserved it," Gabriella said defensively.

"Ms. Montez," Principal Matsui said and Gabriella sank down into her seat. "Now Mr. Bolton, you have two options: you either spend the next hour and two days in detention or you go repaint Ms. Montez' locker. Your choice."

"I think...I'll go repaint the locker," he said as he started to stand up and turned slightly towards her. "Besides I don't think I can spend another second with her." Gabriella glared at him and watched him walk out of the room. After he left the room, Principal Matsui walked in and sat at the desk in the front of the room. Gabriella sighed and laid her head down.


	6. Chapter 6

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: I wish_**

**A/N: it's been a while**

_Chapter 6_

After her second trip to detention, Gabriella was determined to ignore Troy so it wouldn't happen again. She knew it was his fault that she kept getting detentions. He kept bothering her, causing her to retaliate. So today, she was going to ignore Troy for the entire day until she was forced to spend part of the afternoon tutoring him in physics.

She walked up to her locker and smiled softly when she saw its new coat of paint before she quietly undid the lock. As she concentrated on her combination, Taylor walked up to her.

"Hey," she said with a smile.

"Hey. What's up?" Gabriella asked as she opened her locker.

"Nothing much. So how was detention?"

"Wasn't so bad. Especially after Bolton decided to just go repaint my locker instead of staying in detention with me."

"How did he get in there?"

"He told Principal Matsui that he didn't want to do it but in the end he just did it because he didn't want to stay in detention with me."

"Lucky."

"Yep. But today, I'm going to make sure I don't get detention again because of him."

"How?"

"By ignoring him."

"But what about your tutoring session with him after school?"

"I'll still go through with it, but for the rest of the school day, I'm not going to say one word to him."

"Good luck. I know you'll need it."

"Thanks," she said sarcastically. "Let's get to homeroom." Taylor nodded and Gabriella closed her locker before locking arms with her best friend.

They walked into their homeroom minutes later and took their usual seats in the back. They struck up a conversation to pass the time before the bell rang. As they talked amongst themselves, Troy walked into the room with Chad by his side. He smirked when he saw Gabriella sitting in the back of the room.

"Morning, Montez," he said as he walked up to her. He was surprised, however, when she didn't acknowledge him. She just continued her conversation with Taylor. His eyebrow rose and he stared down at her. "Uh. Hello? Montez? I just said something to you." She still continued to ignore him. "Fine. Be like that. I don't want to talk to a stuck up bitch like you anyway," he said, hoping to get a response out of her but still nothing. He walked away and plopped down in his seat.

"What was that about?" Chad asked.

"I think she's ignoring me."

"What are you gonna do?" Troy smirked and looked back at Gabriella.

"Crank the annoyance up a notch." Chad grinned and shook his head. He knew how Troy loved getting under Gabriella's skin. He also knew that her ignoring him wasn't doing him any harm. Troy lived for a challenge and, right now, that's exactly what Gabriella was giving him.

For the rest of the day, Troy was like a fly to Gabriella. He annoyed her to no end. She tried her hardest to ignore him but after a while she couldn't take it. She could feel herself cracking so she headed to the nearest girls' bathroom to escape him.

"Do you really think you can hide out in there?" he asked as he stood against the wall near the bathroom door. "If you do, then you're totally wrong."

Gabriella stood against the far wall of the bathroom, wishing he would just go away. She was tired of him following her. Even if he wasn't in the same class as her, he would follow her to it then be there when it was over. It was too much for her to handle.

"Come on, Montez. Just give up this game already." She glared at the door and sighed, knowing there was nothing else she could do. She shook her head and walked over to the door.

"Dude, what are you doing?" She stopped when she heard Chad's voice.

"What does it look like?"

"Waiting for a girl to come out? Let me guess, Gabriella?"

"You got it."

"You've seriously cranked up your annoyance level?"

"Didn't I say I would? Soon, she'll be insulting me like old times." Gabriella smirked as she listened to their conversation.

"_So, he decided to annoy me more than usual. Fine. Two can play that game. Since you want to annoy me then so be it, but you're not getting one word out of me,"_ she thought to herself before walking out of the bathroom. She smiled when she saw Chad standing there. "Hey, Danforth," she said without sending Troy a second glance.

"Well, that was a lost cause. She's still ignoring you," Chad said when Gabriella was a good few feet away from them.

"She won't be for long. I'm telling you by the end of the day she'll be yelling at me."

"Wanna make a wager on that?"

"Sure."

"Okay, I bet you ten bucks that you won't be able to get Gabriella to talk to you by the end of the day."

"Deal." Troy shook hands with his best friend before going to seek out his prey. He found her minutes later in front of her locker. He smirked and walked up behind her. "Do you really think you can win this game?" he whispered in her ear. She grinned and closed her locker, not once acknowledging his presence. She turned to walk away when he put one arm in front of her. "Come on, Montez. I know you. You can't keep this up forever. In the end, I always get under your skin." She ducked under his arm, as if he had never spoken to her and walked away. He stared after her with an 'unbelievable' look on his face. _"This is gonna be harder than I thought."_

By the end of the day, Troy was sick of trying to get Gabriella to talk to him so he just handed Chad his ten dollars and gave up. He walked to his car with his head down, not believing that she managed to ignore him for the entire day. He went to the drivers' side and got into the car, leaning his head on the steering wheel. He didn't understand why his mood dropped after he lost this game that she had made, but it was getting to him. He was so lost in his thoughts, he didn't realize the brunette that got into his car until he heard the door slam. He lifted his head and stared, confused, at her.

"What? You thought that I wasn't gonna keep our agreement?" she asked.

"I thought you were ignoring me?"

"I was, but only for the school day. After, I can say whatever I want to you. Oh, and that reminds me." She hit him on the back of the head.

"Ow. What was that for?"

"For calling me a stuck up bitch this morning," she said sweetly. "Now are we going or what?" He grumbled inaudible words under his breath before starting the car and driving out of the school parking lot.

They arrived at his house minutes later and he showed her to his backyard. She sat down at the lawn table and he sat across from her.

"So what exactly do you need help on?"

"All of it." She nodded and sighed.

"This is going to be harder than I thought," she mumbled. "Well, let's just start with your homework, shall we?" He nodded and pulled out his Physics homework for the night.


	7. Chapter 7

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: One day...when pigs fly_**

_Chapter 7_

After two hours of trying to get Troy to figure out Physics, Gabriella found she was getting nowhere. She sighed and put her head down, finding her brain couldn't take anymore explaining. Troy was feeling the same way, except he couldn't take anymore 'taking it all in'.

"Why don't we switch here?" he asked and she nodded.

"Fine. I don't think I can explain anything anymore." He nodded and stood up, walking over to the basketball court. She followed and watched as he got a basketball from the rack that sat in the far corner of the court. He passed her the ball, which she barely caught. "What do I do with this?"

"Throw it into the net." She nodded and turned around to face the net in front of her. She took a deep breath and threw the ball into the net. It rebounded off the rim and went flying straight at Troy. He ducked and it went flying into the bushes. "Geez, woman. What are you trying to do? Kill me?" Even though she almost hit him, she couldn't help but laugh.

"S-Sorry," she said, trying to hold back her laughter.

"Yeah. Sure you are." He rolled his eyes and grabbed another ball before walking over to her. "Here." He handed her the ball and stood in front of her. "Try to get the ball past me." She ran one way and he shook his head before turning around. "Traveling."

"What?"

"You were traveling. You have to dribble the ball when you're moving."

"Oh."

"Try it again." She tried it again, this time dribbling the ball but he easily knocked it out of her hand.

"That's no fair."

"What?"

"When I dribble, you can easily knock it out of my hand."

"That's the point. You're not supposed to let your opponent get the ball."

"Oh. Okay."

"Come on. Try it again." She nodded and walked back over to him.

She tried over and over again, but she kept getting the same result. He would push it out of her hands every time. After the twentieth time, she sat on the concrete court and gave up. She was out of breath and her muscles were killing her.

"Giving up already?" She nodded. "Fine, then. This is gonna take some time so why don't we just try another day?" She nodded again and he sighed. "Come on. I'll take you home." He outstretched his hand and she grabbed it, not caring about the promise she made to never touch him again. She was too tired to get herself up so the help was much needed.

She grabbed her bag and followed him out to his car. She climbed into the passenger seat and closed her eyes, feeling exhaustion take over. Minutes later, she was shaken awake and opened her eyes.

"Montez, wake up." She glanced over at Troy and glared at him.

"Why did you wake me?"

"Cause we're at your place and you're drooling on my door." She wiped the corner of her mouth but found nothing there.

"I wasn't drooling."

"I know," he said with a grin. "I just wanted to see what you would do." She rolled her eyes and opened the door. She slammed it back and walked up to her front door. Without turning around, she went into her house with only the sound of the car backing out of the driveway to reassure her that he was leaving.

-

-

Troy walked into school the next morning, feeling like going back to sleep. As he stood in front of his locker, he zoned out a bit and began falling asleep where he stood.

"Troy!" Chad yelled and Troy jumped.

"Wha-What?"

"Dude, you were like falling asleep. You okay?" Troy nodded and yawned.

"Yeah. I just didn't get much sleep last night."

"Why?"

"I was trying to do my Physics homework."

"Isn't Gabriella supposed to be helping you in that?"

"Yeah, but I'm not getting it. She tried to explain it to me for two hours and I still didn't get it."

"How was teaching her b-ball?"

"Horrible. She has no basic skills. None whatsoever."

"Then why don't you teach her those basic skills?"

"Cause it would take a while with her. She may be a brainiac in math and science but she sucks in sports."

"Did you really think she would be good in sports? The girl looks like she's never had any physical activity in her life. She probably took gym like you took Physics. She thought it was a bird course."

"Or she did it because her best friend did."

"That too. You have to be patient with her. She has no idea what she's doing."

"Easier said then done." Troy closed his locker and leaned against it just as Gabriella and Taylor walked by.

"Morning, Montez," he said and once again, she ignored him. "Not this again." He rolled his eyes and Chad chuckled.

"I'll see you in homeroom." Troy nodded and Chad left his best friend's side. Troy sighed and went to find the girl who was once again ignoring him. He spotted her and Taylor walking towards their homeroom and quickly ran up behind her, grabbing her arm.

"I need to borrow your best friend for one second, McKessie," he said to Taylor before pulling Gabriella away from her. He dragged her down the hallway and around a corner before pushing her against the wall. "Okay, what will it take to get you to stop ignoring me?"

"Why does it bother you so much? I thought you would like the fact that I'm ignoring you."

"Because, sadly, you responding to my insults are the only fun parts of my day. That and when we have gym. So what do I have to do?"

"Promise that you won't say anything that will make my response to you get me in trouble."

"Deal." She smirked and nodded.

"Good." She walked away from him and went back to homeroom. He followed seconds later, actually happy that she was talking to him again.

"So that means I get to hear your nasty voice again right?" he asked as he walked behind her.

"Kiss my ass, Bolton," she said in a sing song voice.

"I would, but it's gross, just like the rest of you." She stuck up her middle finger before walking into homeroom. He smirked and walked in after her, knowing this day would be better than the day before.


	8. Chapter 8

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: I want to but I don't_**

**A/N: there's a small change in their attitude towards each other at the end of this chapter but not much.**

_Chapter 8_

Troy had been searching for the brunette he loved to annoy for fifteen minutes. He couldn't find her anywhere, which was odd for him. As he turned a corner, he spotted her and Ryan Evans talking. He hid behind the wall and watched them. Ryan seemed to be flirting with her and she seemed to be flirting back. Troy rolled his eyes before walking out from his hiding place.

Ryan's eyes lifted from his place in Gabriella's eyes and spotted Troy walking up to them. The approaching jock seemed to catch Ryan's interest, causing Gabriella to turn around to see what caused him to stop their conversation. She groaned and rolled her eyes.

"What do you want, Bolton?" she asked in a 'please leave' tone.

"Just wanted to see what you and Evans, here, were talking about."

"Nothing that concerns you."

"Look, Gabriella," Ryan said and Gabriella looked back at him. "I'll talk to you later, okay?" She smiled and nodded.

"Okay." He smiled and left. Troy cleared his throat when he realized she wasn't going to stop staring at the retreating blonde.

"What?" she asked rudely as she turned back to the bane of her existence.

"Are you done flirting with drama boy?"

"I wasn't flirting with Ryan."

"Yeah, and my real name is Kobe Bryant."

"Really? I could have sworn your real name was Asshole," she said and walked away from him. He sighed and chased after her, grabbing her arm.

"Look, I didn't come looking for you just to annoy you."

"Then why did you come looking for me?"

"To tell you that I'm gonna have to postpone our basketball lesson today."

"What? Why?"

"I have practice. I can't afford to miss any."

"But we have gym tomorrow."

"I know, but there's nothing I can do." She sighed and looked down. "Unless..." She lifted her eyes and stared at him with hope.

"Unless what?"

"Unless you want to wait until after practice and I can teach you a few things."

"Anything."

"Okay, but you can't come into the gym. Coach's orders."

"Then where am I supposed to go?"

"Go to the library or something and I'll text you when it's done."

"But I don't have your cell number."

"Give me your phone." She handed him her phone and he typed in his number. "There. Now you have my number." His cell rung seconds later and he pulled it out. "And I have yours."

"So, I'll just go wait in the library." He nodded and they both went their separate ways.

-

-

Troy wandered over to the bleachers as practice came to an end and he picked up his phone from where his towel laid. He browsed through his phone book before coming across Gabriella's name. He quickly put it into text message mode and typed up 'we're done practicing. Come to the gym.'

"Troy, you coming?" Chad asked.

"Nah. I told Montez that I would quickly teach her some basketball."

"Okay. Then I'll see you tomorrow." They slapped hands and Chad left.

"You not gonna go take a shower, son?" his father asked, coming up behind him.

"I promised someone I would teach them how to play basketball, so it makes no sense for me right now."

"Okay. See you at home."

"Bye, dad." Troy sat on the bleachers and waited a few minutes before Gabriella came through the gym doors. "What took you so long?"

"Have you forgotten that the library is on the _other_ side of the building?"

"No. I just like annoying you," he said with a grin. She rolled her eyes and put her stuff down next to his.

"Let's just get this over with." He nodded and followed her out into the middle of the court. He passed her the ball and stood beside her. "Okay. Try and make a shot." She took a deep breath and threw the ball at the net. It hit the backboard and bounced off. "This is _definitely_ gonna be harder than I thought," he mumbled and sighed before going to retrieve the ball. "Let's try something different, shall we?" She nodded and he began dribbling the ball. "Try getting the ball out of my hand."

"Okay. That doesn't seem so hard." She tried once and missed. She tried again and he moved again.

"Don't tell me you can't take this ball from me?" he asked with a smirk. She glared at him and tried it again. Once again, he moved the ball from out of her reach. She tried again and this time he turned around, putting his back to her. "Come on, Montez. This shouldn't be so hard." She reached for the ball again and he once again moved it. Over and over, he taunted her until finally she was able to hit the ball from his grasp. "Good job, Montez." She squealed at her accomplishment and he shook his head.

"I can't believe I did it."

"Don't get a big head. That was just one thing you did. There's a whole bunch of stuff you still need to do." Her spirits deflated and she glared at him.

"You just had to burst my bubble, didn't you?" He laughed and nodded.

"Of course. That's what I live for." She rolled her eyes and grabbed the basketball. She chest-passed it to Troy and he looked at her.

"What?"

"You just did a chest-pass."

"Even that's not hard to learn," she said crouching slightly. He realized what she wanted to and he smirked. He dribbled the ball and tried to get it past her. She made one swift move and knocked the ball out of his grip.

"Whoa." She smirked as she held the ball in one hand.

"I'm good, aren't I?" He rolled his eyes and took it from her.

"Barely." He dribbled the ball and she got into position to block him. He turned his back to her and she tried to hit the ball. He faked right and went left, causing her to loose her footing and fall. He laughed and walked up to her. "You okay down there, Montez?" She shook her head and held her ankle. His grin slipped off his face and he kneeled next to her. "What hurts?"

"My ankle." He took the ankle she was holding into his hands and touched spots along her bone.

"Does that hurt?"

"No."

"Does that?" he asked moving down the bone.

"No."

"Then what does?" he asked then realized she was shaking.

"My stomach from laughing so hard," she said with a giggle. He glared at her and dropped her ankle.

"That's not funny."

"You're right it wasn't, but the look on your face was." She burst into more laughter and Troy couldn't help but laugh.

"I guess it was pretty funny." Their laughter soon subsided and Gabriella sat up.

"Well, I'm ready to call it a night."

"You sure?"

"Yep. We can always continue this tomorrow."

"Even though we have gym tomorrow?"

"Yeah. As long as no one depends on me to make a shot tomorrow, I think I'll be just fine." He nodded and stood up before helping her.

"I'm gonna go take a shower. I'll be right back." She nodded and sat on the bleachers. A few minutes later, Troy reemerged from the locker room and they left the gym. They arrived minutes later in front of her house and for the first time, they wished each other 'good night.'


	9. Chapter 9

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: I wish_**

**A/N: this was actually sitting on my computer for a while and I totally forgot I had it. Okay, so it might actually take a while before I update any of my other stories. Why? Because I'm having the worst case of writer's block ever. Usually in times like this, I start a new story just to get my mind clear. Well, I've started six and I can't finish them. Hopefully before the month ends, I can update another story for you guys.**

_Chapter 9_

Gabriella was nervous the next day. She knew she had gotten the hang of stealing the ball away from people, but she was afraid she would mess up and as much as she despised him, she didn't want to disappoint Troy. She wanted to let him know that he was a good teacher by showing him she could do what he taught her.

"You okay?" Taylor asked as Gabriella stared at the locker in the girls' locker room. Gabriella snapped out of her trance and looked at her best friend.

"What?"

"Are you okay?" Gabriella plastered a smile on her face and nodded.

"Yeah. I'm fine." Taylor didn't believe her, but didn't push it.

"Okay, then let's get out of here." Gabriella nodded again and followed her out of the locker room. She nervously began wringing her fingers and stared at the floor, thinking about all the ways she could mess up. From afar, Troy could tell Gabriella was nervous. He sighed and walked over to her.

"Are you okay?" he asked coming up behind her. She raised her head and looked at him.

"Yeah, just nervous."

"About what?"

"That I'll mess up." He chuckled and she gave him an incredulous look. "What's so funny?"

"You're afraid of messing up. Everyone messes up, Montez. Not as much as you did before, but they did. You'll be fine."

"I hope you're right, Bolton."

"I'm always right." She rolled her eyes and Coach Bolton called them over to start the game they had started the last class.

As the game began, Gabriella had successfully stolen the ball a total count of eight times, passing it to either Troy or Taylor. Troy was proud of his work. He knew soon she would be almost as much of a pro at him as he was. By the end of class, Troy's team was leading and but, sadly, Chad's team caught up and won by two points.

Gabriella was disheartened by the fact that her new found abilities didn't help her team win the game. She took a seat on the bleachers to catch her breath all the while thinking about the game and what she could have done differently.

"Hey, Montez." She looked up expecting Troy to throw some insult at her, but he just smiled and said "Nice moves out there." She smiled and he threw her an unexpected wink. A small flutter erupted from the bottom of her stomach and she froze, wondering what had just happened.

'_No. No _way_ am I feeling something towards him. Sure, he helped me in gym, but he's still a jerk...right?'_ She groaned and put her head in her hands.

"Gabriella, are you okay?" Taylor asked and Gabriella nodded before standing up.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Let's just get out of here." She stood up and the two girls made their way to the locker room.

-

-

A week had gone by since that gym class and nothing had ever been the same, at least not in Gabriella's eyes. She insulted him as much as she could to convince herself that there was no way she had feelings for him. She still continued to tutor him in Physics, but he found it hard to understand.

"Come on. You can get this," she told him as they sat in room.

"I can't. I don't know what the hell I'm doing," he said getting up from his spot beside her on his bed. "I don't get any of this Physics stuff. I'm gonna fail and I know it."

"You're not gonna fail." She got up and walked over to him. "You just have to put your mind to it."

"I've been trying that for the past week and I can't get it." He sat down on his bed and lied back. "Now I know why you called me stupid all those times." She sighed and sat down next to him.

"You're not stupid."

"Are too. You even said it yourself."

"That's because I was angry. I know for a fact you're not stupid."

"Well, when you can prove that to me then I'll believe you." He closed his eyes and they just sat there in silence.

"Troy," she said, for the first time saying his first name, only to find he was fast asleep. She sighed and smiled softly. _"He's kinda cute when he's asleep."_ Her eyes widened when she realized what she had said. She shook her head and looked down at his unfinished homework. "I guess it wouldn't hurt," she said before doing his physics homework.

An hour past by and Troy was awoken by someone shaking him. He opened his eyes and found his mother leaning over him. He jolted up and looked around for the brunette.

"Where'd Gabriella go?"

"Who? Oh, you mean that nice girl. She left a while ago." He sighed and laid back down. "She told me to tell you that she'll see you tomorrow." He nodded and stared at his ceiling.

"_Why didn't she wake me before she left?" _he asked himself as he tuned out his mother. _"I would have taken her home. It's too dangerous for her to be walking home by herself."_ He sat up suddenly and shook his head. "Whoa. Where'd that come from?"

"Where'd what come from, dear?"

"N-Nothing, mom," he said forgetting his mother was in the room.

"Okay. Well, dinner's on the table." She left his room and he ran a hand through his hair.

"There's absolutely no way I'm actually caring about her." He sighed and got up to go downstairs.

-

-

The next day, Troy was on edge. He totally forgot about his Physics homework last night. There was no way he would be able to hand it in uncompleted. He took his seat in Physics class and sighed, pulling out the worksheet she gave to them. His eyes widened when he saw every last question done. He turned it over and a small sticky note was attached to it. He pulled it off and read the neat handwriting on it.

_Consider it a favor. You can thank me later._

A small smile reached his lips as he realized that Gabriella had done his homework for him. He chuckled and shook his head. Now he had to find some way to pay her back.

After Physics he had a free period. Knowing that she also had a free period, he went to seek her out and thank her for doing his homework for him, something he never thought she would do. He found her minutes later standing in front of her locker. He smirked and walked up to her.

"And here I thought you were a goody goody," he said as she turned to him. She smiled and shrugged.

"I guess you thought wrong," she said and closed her locker. "So you came here to..."

"To thank you." She leaned against her locker and he sighed. "It's not something I do every day, but...I think you really deserve it so...thanks." She smiled and pushed off of the locker.

"You're welcome." She walked past him and he followed.

"So what can I do?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, a 'thank you' isn't enough. There has to be something I can do."

"Troy," she said turning around. "The whole point of helping someone is not to get anything in return." He stared at her wide eyed and she quirked an eyebrow. "What?"

"You just said my first name. That's the first time you've ever called me by my first name."

"Actually it was the second. I said it last night, but you were asleep so you couldn't hear me." He nodded and looked like he was figuring out something. "What?" He shook his head and smiled.

"Nothing. Since this is free period, wanna see if we can practice in the gym?"

"Sure." She followed him to the gym and the next thirty minutes was spent teaching her how to play basketball.


	10. Chapter 10

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: not mine_**

**A/N: you will be seeing a new chapter of _Look Beneath The Surface _soon but probably not until next Friday because I am going away starting this Saturday and I won't be back until Thursday so that's five days away from my computer.**

_Chapter 10_

The next few days had been difficult for Troy and Gabriella. Both were trying to fight feelings for each other; feelings that neither wanted. Even with the pending feelings, they continued with their agreement, meeting after school to go to Troy's house and spend an hour each on their end of the deal.

"GOD! Why the fuck can't I get this?" Troy asked as he leaned against his headboard.

"You'll get it."

"No, I won't. I've been working on this for over a week and I still don't get any of it." He leaned his head back and looked up at the ceiling.

Gabriella sighed and tried to think of a way to make it easier for him. "I know." He glanced at her. "How about you apply everything to basketball?"

"Huh?"

"Apply physics to basketball."

"I'm still not following."

"Ugh," she said with a roll of her eyes before grabbing his hand. "Come on." She dragged him downstairs and to the basketball court. "Okay. Say the entire court is 15 feet." She stood at the end of the court and he watched diligently. "Now if you dribbled the ball to half court, that is?"

"7.5 feet."

"Good. Now if you dribbled back to the free throw line, that is one foot. How many feet did you dribble the ball?"

"Um…8.5?"

"Right. And your displacement is?"

"6.5?"

"Correct." He grinned and she walked up to him. "See, you can get it. You just have to apply it to something you can actually pay attention to."

"I guess I can. Uh…thanks, for this."

"Don't thank me just yet. We have _a lot_ of work to do."

For the next hour, Gabriella helped Troy using basketball as an example. Time ticked by and Gabriella found it was time for her to head home.

"I better get going before my mother starts to worry," she said as she walked into his room, grabbing her bag.

"I'll give you a ride," he said and grabbed his keys.

"Thanks."

The ride to her house was, for once, filled with conversation. They talked about anything and everything, feeling comfortable around each other for the first time. He finally pulled up into her driveway and she smiled at him.

"Thanks again for the ride."

"No problem. Hey," he said before she got out. "Since we've basically gotten through what I need to do in physics, I thought maybe we could focus on you tomorrow. Maybe I'll even teach you how to shoot a free throw."

"Sure. It gives my brain a rest anyway."

"Same here."

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow." He nodded and she smiled before getting out of his car. He watched her go into her house before making his way out of her driveway and back to his house.

-

-

Troy was ready for this. Mrs. Hughes had announced the day before that they were going to be having a test. It was the reason he was stressing out at his tutoring session with Gabriella. He didn't, however, tell her that he had a test. He knew that if he did, she would start stressing and that would make him stress even more.

"Okay, class, begin," she said and he turned over his paper.

_Displacement. YES!_ He immediately started answering questions, going over it in his head as if he were on a basketball court. Question by question, he thought about last night and the examples Gabriella had given him. Finally, Mrs. Hughes called 'time' and Troy willingly put down his pen. He knew everything was right and he had Gabriella to thank.

The rest of the class was spent with Mrs. Hughes teaching something new and Troy made sure to pay attention, knowing he didn't need to fail this class and that he couldn't depend on Gabriella's help for the rest of the school year.

When class let out, he went in search of the brunette. He found her by her locker, once again in Ryan Evans' presence. A low growl escaped his throat as he watched the exchange between the two.

_What the hell? Why am I growling? I'm not jealous of Ryan. Why should I be jealous of him? It's not like I like Gabriella. At least I don't think I do. No, I don't. I don't like her._

"Troy?"

He broke out of his argument with himself and stared into her brown eyes. "Huh?"

"Are you okay? You were making these weird faces."

His eyes shifted over to the blonde standing beside her and he glared at him. "Yeah. I'm fine. I was just thinking." He turned back to her. "Can I talk to you for a sec?"

"Sure." She turned to Ryan and smiled. "Talk to you later?"

"Yeah. Later." Both Troy and Gabriella watched the blonde walk away.

"So what's up?" she asked turning to Troy.

"How serious are you two?" he asked, taking his eyes off of the retreating boy and looking at her.

"Me and Ryan? We're just friends."

"You sure about that?"

"Yeah. What's it to you anyway?"

"Just…curious."

"Is that all you wanted to talk to me about?"

"No. I actually came here to say 'thank you'."

"For what?"

"Well, I didn't tell you yesterday, but Mrs. Hughes told us we had a test today and I just finished taking it and I know I aced it."

"How do you know if you haven't gotten the results back?"

"You know how when you're taking a test and the answers just come to you without you having to think them over?" She nodded. "Well that's how this test was. I didn't have to rethink anything and I have you to thank."

She smiled. "Well, you're welcome."

"So we're still going to help you with your free throws after school right?" She nodded. "Good. Then I'll see you then." He turned around and walked away.

Gabriella sighed, dejectedly. No matter how many times she told herself she didn't like him, his presence would always make her stomach flutter. She leaned against her locker and tried to soothe her out of control insides.

-

-

"So are you ready?" he asked as he picked up a ball.

"For?"

"To learn how to shoot free throws? Duh."

"Oh, right."

"Come on." She got up and walked over to where he stood at the free throw line. "Here." She took the ball from his hand and held it.

"Now what?"

"Right hand or left?"

"What?"

"Are you right handed or left handed?"

"Right. Why?"

"Hold the ball in your right hand and hold it above your shoulder." She placed the ball in her right hand and cocked her arm back, holding it straight over her shoulder. "Make sure it's right next to your ear without touching it. Now…" He moved behind her and took her left arm, "put your left hand on the side of the ball. Bend your knees slightly," he said, putting his hands on her waist and pulling her down. Gabriella could feel her heart speed up and her face heat up. "Now when I count to three, bend your knees and push up. One. Two. Three." She bent her knees then pushed her knees straight. "All your power comes from your knees. I'm gonna count to three again and this time I want you to throw the ball when you push up. Got it?"

"Got it."

"One. Two. Three." She bent down then came up, throwing the ball at the same time. She watched as it flew from her hand and went straight into the basket. "You got it."

"I can't believe I just shot a free throw."

"Well believe it." He squeezed her sides in congratulations and she froze. She hadn't even remembered his hands being on her until that moment.

She turned slightly, looking at him over her shoulders. He looked at her, staring into her brown eyes before his drifted to her lips and back up to her eyes. "Troy…" she said softly, but was cut off by his lips connecting with hers.

Her lids closed immediately and she kissed back. She absentmindedly reached up with her left hand and tangled her fingers in his hair. When they broke for air, they stared at each other, neither believing what they just did.

"Gabriella…I…"

"I-I should go." She detached herself from him and ran over to the back porch, grabbing her bag. "I'll, uh, I'll see you tomorrow," she said and left him alone in the backyard.


	11. Chapter 11

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: I think you get the point_**

_Chapter 11_

Troy stood at his locker with his head leaning against it. Images of last night flashed through his mind. He couldn't believe he did what he did.

"Troy." Her voice caught him off guard and he turned around to face her.

"H-Hey."

"Can we talk?"

"I would, but I have to do something before homeroom. I'll see you later." He walked away, leaving her to stare after him. She knew he was avoiding it. She didn't want to talk about it either, but they had to. Things had to be figured out.

Walking to homeroom, she took her seat in the back and stared at the door. Taylor walked in seconds later and took her seat beside her.

"Hey, Gabi."

"Hey."

"What's wrong?"

Gabriella looked over at Taylor then looked around the room before moving closer to her best friend. "You know how I go over to Troy's house so he can help me with my basketball skills?"

"Yeah."

"Well, yesterday he was helping me learn how to shoot free throws and…we kissed."

"What!" Taylor screeched loudly.

"Shh! Tay."

"Sorry," Taylor whispered. "How did that happen?"

"I don't know. He was showing me how to position my arms and legs and when I made the shot, I was so excited, I forgot his hands were on my waist."

"When did you remember?"

"When he squeezed my sides. I froze right then and there and I turned slightly to look at him. One minute we were just staring at each other and the next…we were lip locking."

"Wow, Gabs."

"I know."

"What did you do afterwards?"

"I ran. I was just so shell shocked that I needed to get as far away from him as I could. But then today, I tried to talk to him about it and he just blew me off."

"Maybe he's still reeling from it. Or maybe he's mad cause you ran off."

"What was I supposed to do? We're supposed to hate each other and we just willingly kissed each other. What would you do?"

"I guess the same thing you did," Taylor said truthfully. "But I have to know, do you like him?"

"What? No."

"Uh-huh. So that's why you kissed him back."

"I was caught in the heat of the moment, but I don't like him. He makes my life a living hell on a daily basis."

"True, but tell me, has he done anything to annoy you in the past week?"

Gabriella thought hard back on the past few days, a realization coming over her. "No, not that I remember."

"Well, maybe his feelings towards you are changing."

"I doubt that."

"You never know, Gabs. Boys are unusual and their attitudes towards people can change. Troy's no exception to that."

"I know, but I doubt he would like me out of all people." Her eyes turned towards the door just as Troy walked in with Chad by his side. She caught his eye, but he quickly averted them to his seat. Sighing, Gabriella sat back in her seat and wished she could know what was going through Troy's mind at that moment.

-

-

He couldn't help but glance over at her as she sat next to her best friend in the cafeteria. He didn't know why he couldn't just go over there and talk to her like she wanted him to do. It was probably because he didn't want to hear the words he was dreading. Truth was, when she left him alone on the court last night, it hurt. He tried to tell himself that he didn't like her and that it didn't hurt, but he did and it had. He didn't want to hear her voice her disgust at the fact that he had been the one to kiss her, though she had kissed back.

"Just go talk to her." Troy turned his head and saw Chad staring back at him.

"What?"

"Go talk to her. I know you want to."

"I can't."

"Why not? I know you want to explain the whole situation as to why you kissed her."

"It's not that easy."

"And why not?"

"Because she hates me. The second I tell her I want to talk about the kiss, I know she'll yell at me for doing it."

"But she kissed back, didn't she?"

"Yeah, but…maybe she didn't mean to."

"Keep telling yourself that, but the truth of it all is that she likes you."

"Yeah, right," he said with a mock laugh.

"Why wouldn't she?"

"Uh, maybe because I spent the last four years tormenting her."

"Well, do you like her?"

Troy froze, knowing he really did. "I…I don't know."

"You must like her if you willingly kissed her."

"Maybe I do. I really don't know at this point."

"Well, either way, you have to talk to her."

Troy sighed and looked over at Gabriella. "I guess you're right."

"Of course I am."

Rolling his eyes, Troy stood up and went to throw his trash away. Chad stood up after him and followed. Neither of them noticed the brunette staring at the lighter of the two.

Staring at Troy's retreating figure, Gabriella failed to notice a familiar blonde haired boy walking up to her until he sat in front of her, obscuring her line of sight.

"Hey, Gabriella."

"Hey, Ryan. What's up?"

"Well, I was wondering if maybe we could go out tonight."

"Go out? You mean like on a date?"

"If you want it to be a date, then yeah."

She nodded, a soft smile appearing on her face. "Sure. Why not?"

"Okay. Then I'll pick you up at seven." She nodded and he left.

"You're actually going to go out with Ryan even though you apparently like Troy?"

"I told you, Tay, I don't like Troy."

"Oh sure, so you staring longingly after him tells me you don't like him."

"I don't and I wasn't staring longingly. I was trying to figure out why he doesn't want to talk about yesterday and get it over with."

"Maybe he's scared to hear how you really felt about it. How do you really feel about it?"

"Well…I'm not going to deny that I liked it…_a lot_."

"And you say you don't like him."

"I don't. I just…liked the kiss."

"Whatever you say, Gabs. Just do me a favor and try to think about how Troy might feel if he found out about you and Ryan going on this little date of yours."

"He's not going to feel anything towards it. I told you, he doesn't like me."

"And I say he does. Just like I say you do. But you just keep denying it, it'll all catch up to you soon enough." Taylor stood up and left Gabriella alone at the table.

Gabriella knew Taylor was right about her liking Troy, but she refused to accept that she did. He had made her life a living hell for the past four years. There was no way she was overlooking the torture he put her through just to satisfy her feelings. Besides, she knew he didn't like her back. He wasn't the kind of guy to go for a girl like her; a girl with brains. He preferred his girls tall, blonde and stupid.

-

-

Troy sat on his bed, staring at the far wall. He was contemplating on whether or not to call Gabriella and talk about the kiss. Sighing, he reached for his phone and dialed her number, silently thanking himself for actually asking her for her number.

"Hello?"

"Um, hi. Is this Gabriella?"

"No, this is her mother."

"Oh. Well, is she home?"

"No, she's not. May I ask who's calling?"

"Just a friend of hers. Do you know where she is?"

"She went to Georgia's Italian Restaurant downtown."

"Okay. Thank you."

"You're welcome." He hung up the phone and wondered why she was at a romantic restaurant. Grabbing his car keys, he made his way to downtown Albuquerque and parked at the first spot he found that was the closest to the restaurant. He walked into the dimly lit room and the first thing he saw was Gabriella sitting at a table in the corner and across from her, sat Ryan. His heart stopped and he didn't notice the hostess walking up to him.

"May I help you, sir?"

He turned to her and stared blankly before shaking his head. "No. I was just looking for someone, but she's not here." He turned around, taking one more look at Gabriella's smiling face before leaving the restaurant.


	12. Chapter 12

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

_**Disclaimer:...not mine**_

**A/N: for now, this is going to be the only story I'll update. I will probably update _Look Beneath The Surface_ once in a while, but this story will be my main priority at the moment. I'm so excited because I just saw the commercial for HSM 3 yesterday on Disney Channel. My mother just so happened to be switching channels and she stopped at Disney Channel while it was on and I think she knew I was waiting for the date because she didn't change channels like she usually would. The release date is February 17, about a week or two earlier than I previously thought. They have a lot more extra stuff on it than they did on the previous DVD's for the other two. Hopefully they will just put everything they need to on the one release instead of rereleasing it like the did with the first two. And it comes with an extra disc that allows you to put it into your iTunes.**

_Chapter 12_

Gabriella walked into school the next day, still reeling from confusion. Her mother had told her that someone had called looking for her, a guy in particular, saying he was a friend of hers. The thing was, Gabriella didn't have any guy friends besides Ryan and she was with Ryan so why would he be looking for her. Catching sight of the blue eyed basketball captain, she wondered if maybe it was him who called her and walked up to him.

"Troy." He kept his back to her, refusing to look at her. "Come on, Bolton, I know you can hear me." He still didn't answer her, keeping his attention on his open locker. "Fine, don't talk to me. Just answer me this: did you call me last night?"

"Nope," he answered, still keeping his back to her.

"Well, it couldn't have been anyone else."

He slammed his locker shut and sighed. "If you knew the answer, why the fuck are you asking me?"

"Because I want to hear it from you. And if you really did call me, why did you lie to me and tell me you didn't?" He shook his head and walked away from her. "Hold on," she said moving in front of him and stopping him from going anywhere. "We're not finished here."

"Oh, but we are." For the first time, Gabriella was able to look Troy in the eye and she didn't like what she saw. Anger laced his blue orbs along with sorrow and…regret. Why, she questioned, was he feeling regret? "Now if you'll excuse me, _Montez_, I have more important things to deal with." He bypassed her, shoving his shoulder hard against hers.

Ever since the day she did his homework for him, he only called her by her first name. If he called her by her last name, it was only jokingly, but this…this wasn't joking. It was far from joking. He was acting the same way he was before they started helping each other.

_He hates me. I knew it. Why would someone like him have feelings for someone like me?_ Sighing, she bit back a sob and made her way to her locker.

-

-

Troy sat in History, not really paying attention to what the teacher had to say. In reality, he was more focused on the brunette sitting in front of him. Three weeks ago, he would have been annoying her to no end, but now he couldn't find it in him. He wanted to go back to the way things were and abandon every good feeling he felt when around her, but it was harder than it looked. She had told him before that she and Ryan were only friends so why was it that he found them at a romantic restaurant _together_.

"Mr. Bolton." He snapped out of his trance and looked up at Mr. Wright, the History teacher. "Thank you for rejoining the land of the living, but I don't appreciate you zoning off in my class so I'm giving you detention."

"Like I give a damn," Troy said, rolling his eyes. Everyone looked at him with surprise, even the girl in front of him, her brown eyes reflecting shock and sadness.

"Then you wouldn't mind having two days detention and a trip to the Principal's office, now would you?" Troy stood, grabbing his bag and leaving the classroom. He was just happy to be far away from the girl that made his heart flutter every time she looked at him.

He, of course, had no intention of going to the Principal's office. He walked to his locker and sat down in front of it, staring off into space. Minutes later he heard the sound of footsteps, footsteps that stopped right in front of him.

"What the hell is your problem?"

"None of your fucking business."

Gabriella knelt down beside him and tried to look him in the eye. "Troy, what did I do to you?"

"Doesn't matter."

"Yes it does. I wanna know why you've completely turned around and started ignoring me. Is it about the kiss?"

He looked at her, eyes locking for the first time since that morning. "It has nothing to do with the kiss." He stood up and began walking away.

"Then what is it about?" she asked, standing up. He stopped, but kept his back facing her and thought about whether or not he wanted to tell her the truth. "Are we just going to forget about the kiss? Act like it never happened?"

"If that's what you want, then fine." He turned around, keeping his eyes on the ground.

"Why do you think that's what I want?"

"You hate me, you're disgusted by me. What else would you want?"

"Okay, yes, it's true that I hate you, but I'm not disgusted by you."

"Well, then I guess that's one less thing we don't share common grounds on."

"You're…you're disgusted by me?"

He laughed half-heartedly. "That's not what I was talking about." His face turned serious and he looked at her.

A flood of realization washed over her. "I thought you hated me?"

"I thought so too. But things change and feelings change, so right now, hate is the last thing I feel for you." He walked away, leaving her speechless.

-

-

Gabriella sat with her head on the table, untouched food sitting in front of her. Taylor sat down beside her and gave her a worried look.

"Are you okay?"

"He likes me. He actually _likes_ me."

"I hate to say 'I told you so,' but I told you so."

"But why? Why would he like me, out of all people?"

"Because life can't be explained. If it could, then it would be too easy. Did you find out why he's mad at you?"

"No. I was so shocked that he likes me that I didn't get a chance to ask."

"Maybe you should confront him about that. He's basically mad at you for no reason."

"I guess you're right." Gabriella looked over at where Troy sat and watched as he got up and left the cafeteria alone. "I'll see you later, okay?" Taylor nodded and Gabriella followed Troy out of the cafeteria. "Troy."

"Now what?" he asked, turning towards her.

"You never told me what I did wrong."

"It's not like it'll change anything so what's the point?"

"I wanna know why you're mad at me. What did I do to piss you off so much?"

"Like I said 'it won't change anything'."

"Do you like causing me pain? Huh? Do you like seeing me cry?"

"No, I don't. But right now, I don't give a shit what you do. So why don't you just go cry to Ryan. I'm sure he'll be happy to comfort you."

"That's who this is about? Ryan? I told you, he's just a friend."

"Yeah, sure he is. And that's the reason why you both were at Georgia's Italian Restaurant yesterday."

"H-How did you know about that?"

"I saw you, the both of you. I called your house looking for you, and your mother told me you were there. I went looking for you and found you with him. But it doesn't change anything, right? You actually _like_ Ryan, unlike me, the person you hate." He turned around and walked away.

Gabriella wanted to call him back, tell him that she didn't hate him, but the problem was she didn't know if that was completely true. A part of her didn't hate him, a part of her actually liked him. As a friend or as more, she wasn't sure. But then there was the part of her that still held a grudge towards the torture he put her through. Sighing, she made her way towards her locker, the urge to be alone coming over her.

-

-

Troy sat on the bleachers overlooking the track and football field, trying to clear his head. It had been hard for him to say all of that without wanting to break down. Never in his life had Troy Bolton felt so vulnerable than the moment in time when he realized he was in love with the girl that he had devoted his energy to tormenting. How did it happen? How did he suddenly turn out to have feelings for this girl? He ran a hand through his hair and leaned his head against his palm.

"What the fuck am I gonna do?"

"You can stop talking to yourself." Troy's head shot up and he came face to face with his best friend.

"Hey, Chad, what's up?"

"I could ask you the same question." Chad took a seat beside Troy. "What's going on with you?"

"I…I think I've fallen…for Gabriella."

"Seriously?" Troy nodded. "Well, it's about time."

"What?"

"You've been torturing her since high school started. Did you really think it was only because she's the nerd and you're the jock?"

"Well, yeah. What else would it be?"

"Dude, do you not remember back in elementary school when we used to pick on the girls we liked?"

"Yeah, but what does that have to do with…?" Troy's eyes widened. "Are you seriously telling me that I've been acting like a third grader with a crush these past four years?"

"Yep."

"Fuck. Has anyone else noticed?"

"Quite a few people actually."

"God damnit." He buried his face in his hands. "Everyone noticed except for the one person that actually counts."

"What do you mean?"

"Gabriella…hates me. She wants nothing to do with me."

"Then make her like you."

"I can't."

"And why not?"

"She likes Ryan Evans."

"Out of all people why him?"

"I wish I knew." He sighed, blowing out a breath. He turned his eyes to the field and just stared, forgetting his best friend was sitting beside him.


	13. Chapter 13

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: not mine_**

**A/N: this isn't much, just filler.**

_Chapter 13_

Gabriella sat at her desk, staring blankly at the book she was supposed to be reading. Her mind, however, was on the blue eyed boy that up until then she believed hated her. Sighing, she closed the book and walked over to her bed. It had been almost two weeks since Troy confessed to liking her and he hadn't spoken to her since. Her relationship with Ryan, however seemed to grow. It seemed that without Troy to bother her, she spent more time talking to Ryan. As much as she liked not being tortured, she couldn't deny that she missed hearing his voice. From her bedside table, her cell phone rung and she answered.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Gabriella, it's Ryan."

"Oh, hey, what's up?"

"Not much. I'm actually calling to ask you something."

"Ask away."

"Well, I wanted to know if maybe you'd be my date for prom."

"Um…well, me and Taylor were actually planning to go together."

"Oh."

"But I would love for you to be my dance partner there."

"I can do that." She could hear him smiling from the other side, her own grin crossing her face.

"Gabi," her mother said, peeking through the partly opened door. "Taylor's here."

"Okay, mom. Ryan, I gotta go. Taylor and I are going shopping for our dress."

"Well, then I'll let you go. I'll talk to you later."

"Bye." She ended the call and got up, heading downstairs. She climbed into Taylor's car minutes later and the two girls made their way to the mall.

-

-

"Ryan asked me to prom," Gabriella said as she and her best friend walked through the mall.

Taylor gasped and turned to her. "What did you say?"

"I said 'no'."

"What? Why?"

"Because _we're_ supposed to be going together, remember?"

"I know, but I wouldn't have minded if you went with him." Taylor trailed off for a second before turning back to Gabriella and crossing her arms. "This doesn't have anything to do with Troy, does it?"

"What? No! Why would it?"

"Well, he hasn't talked to you in two weeks, much less looked at you. I'm just thinking that maybe you're hoping if you don't go with a date that he'll come to his senses and ask you to dance at the prom. Knowing you, you would never be able to dance with someone who likes you if you're with someone else even if it's only for one night."

"That's not it at all."

"Gabriella, stop pretending like Troy's avoidance of you isn't bothering you. You and I both know it is."

"So what if it is?"

"Just admit it, you like him."

"I do not."

"You do too."

"Whatever." Gabriella looked away from her best friend. "You can say whatever you want, but I don't like Troy."

"Speaking of Troy, here he comes." Gabriella turned her attention forward and watched as the blue eyed boy walked towards them.

"McKessie, Chad wants to talk to you for a second," he said not once looking at Gabriella. Taylor looked around the five foot ten boy and saw his best friend standing against a wall, looking at his shoes.

Taylor looked at Gabriella. "I'll be right back." Taylor walked away, leaving Gabriella and Troy to stand there in an uncomfortable silence.

"Why are you ignoring me?" she asked finally.

"You know why."

"But it makes no sense." His eyes turned to her, looking at her for the first time in two weeks.

"How does it not make sense? I told you I like you and you told me you hate me, plain and simple."

"Troy, you've put me through torture since the day we started high school. Did you really expect me to forget all of that?"

"No, but I was hoping you would look past it."

"How can I look past that?"

"Because everything I ever did was my way of saying that I like you."

"What?"

He shook his head. "Never mind."

"I'm not interrupting something, am I?" Taylor asked as she made herself known.

Troy shook his head again and looked away from Gabriella. "No, you're not." He walked away, going back to his best friend.

"What was that about?"

"Can we not talk about it?" Gabriella asked and walked away from Taylor. "So what did Chad want to talk to you about?"

"He asked me to prom."

"And what did you say?"

"That I would go."

"What?" Gabriella stopped walking and turned to her friend. "Tay, I thought we were going together?"

"I know I said we were going to go together, but you gotta understand, I've been crushing on Chad for a year now and I wanna see where this goes. Besides, now you can say 'yes' to Ryan."

"Tay…" Gabriella groaned.

"Just go with him and see what happens. If you don't think he's right for you, then just tell him."

"I already tried that when we went on that date and things went well…until I found out that Troy saw me there with Ryan."

"Whoa, hold up. You never told me this."

"I didn't. I thought I did."

"No, you didn't. So Troy actually saw you two together?" Gabriella nodded.

"That's why he was mad at me that day."

"Damn. He's got it bad. Wait, but why was he mad at you when he hadn't even told you he liked you yet?"

"Because it was only a day or two after he kissed me and I also told him once that Ryan was just a friend."

"He actually asked you if you and Ryan were more than friends?" Gabriella nodded. "Girl, if that didn't tell you that he liked you, I don't know what would've, besides that kiss of course."

"Things have gotten too complicated and I can't take it."

"Look, just tell Ryan that you'll go to prom with him and have a good time. Don't think about how Ryan feels towards you or what Troy feels about you. Just let everything go and enjoy the night, alright?"

Gabriella nodded and the two girls continued to shop for their prom dresses.


	14. Chapter 14

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: not mine_**

**A/N: I'm not sure when this story is ending, but I have a feeling it might be soon. Who knows? I might add more drama to it or I might not. Depends on how I feel.**

_Chapter 14_

"Just ask her."

Troy slammed his locker shut and turned to his best friend, "Chad, I've been ignoring her for the past three weeks. Prom is in two days and I bet she already has a date."

"But you won't know unless you try," Chad said and clamped a hand on Troy's shoulder. "And here she comes now." Troy eyes trained forward as he watch the object of his affection walk up to her locker and stop in front of it. "Go on." Chad pushed Troy, causing him to stumble slightly. Regaining his composure, Troy walked towards Gabriella, figuring out what to say to her.

He stopped beside her and cleared his throat. She turned her attention away from her locker and looked at him. "Finally decided to speak to me again?" she asked, bitterness laced in her voice.

"I know I've been avoiding you, I just…I needed a little time."

"Three weeks is enough time for you?"

"Look, I didn't come to argue with you."

"Then what did you come over here for?"

"To ask you if…if you wanted to go to prom with me."

Gabriella stared at him in shock. "I…I can't," she said and turned back to her locker.

"Why not?"

"Because I have a date already."

"O-Oh," he said disappointedly.

"I better get to class." He nodded and she closed her locker before walking away.

Troy stared at her retreating figure before feeling a hand on his shoulder, his head turning to look at his best friend. "Hey. I, uh, heard what happened. You alright?"

Troy nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. Let's get to class."

Chad watched his best friend walk ahead, knowing he was far from fine. Troy loved Gabriella and it was hurting him knowing that she didn't feel the same. Chad hated seeing his best friend in pain. The only thing that would heal Troy's heart was getting Gabriella to return his feelings. Chad knew Gabriella did feel the same thing, Taylor had told him so. The only problem was getting Gabriella to acknowledge and accept it.

-

-

Gabriella sat in Trigonometry, thinking about Troy. She couldn't believe he would actually ask her to prom. Her stomach did flip flops just thinking about how it might have been if she was able to go with him, but it was too late. She said 'yes' to Ryan's offer and now she was taken.

"_It's Troy's fault. He should have asked me earlier."_ Her eyes widened as she realized what her words meant. Would she have said 'yes' if he had asked her before Ryan? There was no doubt in her mind that she would have. Sighing, she thought back to when she turned Troy down. The look on his face was heartbreaking.

"Ms. Montez." Gabriella snapped out of her thoughts and looked at Mr. Hale.

"Um, yes?"

"Can you tell me what I just said?"

"I, uh…"

"I thought so. Please pay attention."

"Yes, sir," she said sinking into her seat. When the bell rang, Gabriella quickly made her way out of the classroom, hoping to avoid further embarrassment. As she walked down the hallway, she heard her name being called and turned around, finding Ryan running up to her. "Hey," she said when he stopped in front of her.

"Hey. So what color is your dress again?"

"Blue. Why?"

"Just making sure my tux matches."

"Prom is in two days. You don't have your tux yet?"

"I have it, I was just making sure that it would match with your dress. Walk you to class?"

"Sure." He smiled and held out his arm. She linked her arm with his and he escorted her down the hallway. Gabriella wanted to smile, but her eyes had caught a glimpse of Troy and her mind went back to earlier. She didn't want to feel bad, but she couldn't help it. She didn't want to like him, but, again, she couldn't help it. "Thanks for walking me," she said to him when they reached the door.

"No problem. I'll see you later." She nodded and watched him walk away before going inside. This was the class she didn't want to be in, History. She sat right in front of Troy and she knew it was going to be hard for her to ignore him.

She walked in and took her seat, finding his empty. She still had a few minutes to relax before an hour of awkwardness started. Troy walked in a few seconds later and his eyes connected with hers before he made his way to his seat.

Taking a deep breath, Gabriella turned around to face him. "Troy."

"Don't, Gabriella, just don't."

"I just wanted to say that I'm sorry, but if you wanted to ask me, you should have asked me earlier instead of avoiding me."

"Excuse me for not knowing you wanted me to ask you," he said bitterly.

"I didn't," she mumbled.

He rolled his eyes. "Figures."

"But I would have gone with you if you would have just asked me."

"What's the use, Gabriella? It's not like you would have enjoyed it."

"That's not true. Just because I don't feel the same way you do, doesn't mean I don't enjoy your company."

"Can we just drop the subject?"

"Not until you tell me why you didn't ask me earlier."

"What do you want me to say? I didn't ask you because I wasn't sure if you had already gotten a date? I didn't ask you because I didn't want it to feel like an obligation for you? Or is this better, I didn't ask you because I didn't want my heart ripped out _again_? Take your pick."

"Troy, I didn't mean for you to feel like that."

"Well, it's too late for that now, huh?" Gabriella turned around in her seat and tried to hold back the tears that threatened to fall. Troy had never been this angry with her. Not even when she had gotten him in trouble multiple times, he never held a grudge against her.

-

-

Troy slammed his locker and walked straight for the exit. He ignored anyone and everyone. He didn't want to be bothered, but of course there was the stray few that didn't think anything of his attitude; one of those people being Ryan Evans.

"Hey, Troy!" Ryan called as he ran after the blue-eyed boy. "Troy, wait up."

Troy stopped in his tracks and spun around. "_What_ the _fuck_ do you want?"

"Whoa. Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed."

"Either tell me what you want, Evans, or get the fuck out of my face."

"I just wanted to know if you wanted to share a limo with me, Gabriella, my sister and Zeke."

"No thank you," he said and turned around to walk away.

"Oh, come on. We have a lot of space."

"Like I said, no thank you."

"I'm sure your date would love it."

Troy snapped and turned around, grabbing Ryan by his collar and pushing him against a locker. "If you don't get the hell out of my face, I'm going to beat the shit out of you."

"What the hell? I just asked you a simple question."

"And I gave you a simple answer. Now get out of my face before I rearrange yours." He let go of Ryan and walked away.


	15. Chapter 15

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

_**Disclaimer:...**_

**A/N: so excited. HSM 3 comes out today. I pre-ordered it though, so I probably won't get it until tomorrow or Wednesday (stupid US Postal Service). Next is Twilight which comes out March 21st.**

_Chapter 15_

Gabriella stood in front of her full-body mirror, admiring her dress; a floor length midnight blue gown with spaghetti straps and an open back that dropped to just above her backside. Her hair fell in soft curls around her face. A light shade of make-up adorned her face, eyeliner bringing out her brown orbs. She couldn't believe she was about to go to prom.

_This doesn't feel right,_ she thought as she stared at her reflection.

"Gabi, Ryan's here."

"Coming!" she called and looked at herself once more before heading downstairs. As she descended the staircase, Ryan came into view and she smiled.

Ryan smiled back and met her at the bottom stair. "You look beautiful," he said taking her hand.

"Thank you." He nodded and slipped the white rose tied with a blue bow corsage on her wrist. "Ryan," she said looking at the simple but beautiful decoration around her wrist. "This is beautiful. Is this why you wanted to know the color of my dress?"

"Guilty as charged," he responded blushing.

"I knew it."

"Picture time," her mother said and Gabriella walked down the last step, taking her place beside Ryan. After taking a few pictures, her mother bid them goodbye and the two left the house.

"Thank you," she said when he helped her into the limousine. She smiled at the other occupants of the limo and settled into her seat as Ryan sits beside her.

-

-

"Why am I here again?" Troy asked as he walked into the overly decorated gymnasium with Chad and Taylor by his side.

"Because you need to enjoy yourself," Chad said as he looked around, holding Taylor close to him.

"I'm probably the only one here _without_ a date."

"No. You think?"

"Uh, yeah, I do."

"Look, just chill and enjoy. Don't worry about being the only one without a date."

"Whatever."

"There she is," Taylor said and left Chad's side making both guys turn around to see what she was talking about. Troy's stomach did flips as his eyes landed on the beautiful brunette that walked into the gym, arms locked with Ryan Evans'. He watched as she spoke with Taylor before her eyes trailed over and connected with his. She turned to Ryan and said something to him. Troy watched as the blonde nodded and walked away. His mouth went dry as he watched her walk up to him.

"Hey," she said shyly.

"Hi," he responded finally finding his voice. "Um, you look…amazing."

She blushed slightly. "Thanks. So…where's your date?"

"Well, being that someone _rejected_ me two days before, I didn't have time to find someone else. Truthfully, I wasn't going to come, but Chad made me."

"Oh."

"Gabriella!"

She turned around and saw Ryan motioning her over. "I should go."

"Yeah. He is your date after all."

She nodded and turned to Troy, looking up into his blue eyes. "I'll, um, I'll save you a dance."

He smiled softly. "Promise?"

She returned the smile and nodded. "I promise."

"I'll hold that to you, Montez." She turned and walked away, glancing back every few seconds.

"Do you still believe she doesn't like you?" Chad asked, putting a hand on his best friend's shoulder.

"I won't stop until she proves it to me," he said and walked away just as Gabriella and Ryan started slow dancing.

Gabriella watched from her place in Ryan's arms as Troy walked over to the punch table by himself. She couldn't help but feel sorry for him, but it wasn't her fault that he didn't have a date. If he wasn't so busy avoiding her, he could have asked her and even if she had said 'no', he would have been able to find a date for tonight.

_What if he didn't want to ask anyone else?_ That thought ran through her head as she swayed to the music. It couldn't have been possible though. Sure he had told her he liked her, but could he have possibly liked her that much to not want to take anyone else but her to the prom. She laughed on the inside and shook her head. _No way._

When the song ended, she and Ryan returned to the sidelines. He told her he was going to get some punch and she nodded, taking a seat on the bleachers.

"Hey, Gabriella." She looked up and smiled as Taylor took a seat beside her.

"Hey, Tay."

"So how do you like prom so far?"

"It's wonderful."

"But…"

"There's no 'but'."

"Yes, there is. Come on. Tell me what's on your mind."

"Well, I just…I feel sorry for Troy."

"Why?"

"He didn't have enough time to find a date."

"Is that what he told you?"

"Well, yeah. It's true, isn't it?"

"Gabriella, this is Troy Bolton we're talking about. He could have gotten any girl he wanted to go with him."

"Then why didn't he?"

"Think about it. You already know the answer."

"May I have this dance?" Chad asked holding out his hand to Taylor.

"You may," she said with a smile and took his hand. Gabriella watched as the two went out onto the dance floor before her eyes searched the gym for Troy.

"Gabriella?" She turned her attention to the guy standing in front of her holding out a cup for her to take. She smiled and took it from him.

"Thanks." She took a sip and her eyes went back to discreetly wandering the gym for the blue eyed boy.

"So there was something I wanted to talk to you about," Ryan said, trying to talk over the music that was now blaring through the space.

"What?"

"I want to talk to you."

"I can't hear you." Ryan took her hand and led her out of the gym, not eluding the eyes of the brooding boy standing on the other side of the gym.

"This is a whole lot better," Ryan said as they stopped in the empty hallway. Gabriella leaned against the locker and looked at him.

"So what did you wanna talk to me about?"

"Well, I just wanted to know if you would…be my girlfriend?"

Gabriella stood there, speechless. "W-What?"

"I know school's almost over and we'll be heading off to different schools and everything, but…I just…I don't know. I just don't want to end school without knowing if we could've worked."

"Ryan, I…"

"You don't have to say anything. I understand if you don't want to…" His lips were silenced by her finger and she smiled.

"I'd love to." He grinned before leaning in. She bit her lip in hesitation, but leaned in moments later, closing the space between them.


	16. Chapter 16

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer:..._**

**A/N: I'll probably end it in two more chapters unless you guys have an idea for conflict that you would like me to use. Okay, I take back what I said about the US Postal Service. They rock, seriously. I thought I wasn't going to get HSM 3 until a day or two later but I got it in the mail the same day it came out. How awesome is that? And since I'm so happy, I've decided to give you guys another chapter and it's also because of the fact that you guys are great reviewers.**

_Chapter 16_

"Where the hell is he?" Chad asked, looking around for his best friend.

"There he is," Taylor said, pointing to the fuming guy walking through the door.

Chad ran up to him. "Dude, what happened?"

"I put my heart out there time and time again for her and she continues to tear it in half."

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about Gabriella. I saw her and Ryan leaving the gym so I followed. He fucking asked her to be his girlfriend and she said 'yes'. Not only that, but she kissed him. Why can't she see how much I care for her? Why can't she see that I lo-?" He stopped, not wanting his best friend to hear his confession.

"Just say it, man."

Troy took a deep breath and looked at Chad. "I _love_ her and she just doesn't see that."

"She'll see it. You just have to give her time."

"Why should I give her time when it's apparent that she doesn't want me?"

"Troy…"

"I'm outta here. I can't take anymore of this shit."

"Where are you going?"

"Home."

"And how are you getting there?"

Troy sighed and turned around. "Do you mind?"

Chad shook his head. "I'll be right back," he said to Taylor and she nodded before watching the two guys leave.

-

-

Ryan pulled back from the kiss and stared at her closed eyes. Her eyes fluttered open and she bit her lip again.

"What's wrong?" he asked, noticing the look on her face.

"It…it didn't feel right."

"Yeah, I, uh, noticed it too."

"Can we still remain friends?" she asked, hoping to salvage their friendship.

"Of course." She smiled and hugged him.

"Good. Now let's get back to the party. There's a guy I owe an apology to," she said as they started walking.

"Let me guess, Troy Bolton?"

"H-How did you know?"

"Don't think I didn't see the way you acted around him earlier. You like him."

"As much as I've tried to deny it, I can finally say that I do, I really do."

"He likes you, too, you know. He's been acting like a jackass for the past four years, but I guess he didn't know any better way to express his feelings."

"Do you really think that's why he tortured me?"

"Everyone thinks that."

"Really?"

"Really. He's been acting like a kid with his first crush, though I think in this case, it might have turned into something more."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, if it was just a crush, it would have passed, but he never stopped, so I think he doesn't just like you."

"You mean?"

"Yep. I think he loves you."

"There's no way."

"It could be possible."

She sighed and shook her head. "And to think I told him I hated him. I didn't think it would affect him as much, but it did. I've been doing nothing, but breaking his heart over and over again."

"Well, now that you are accepting how you feel about him, you can fix things."

"Thanks, Ryan."

"No problem."

The two stepped back into the gym and Gabriella went to go find Troy. After spending a few minutes of looking around for him, Gabriella became frustrated when she couldn't find him. Spotting Taylor, she walked over to her, hoping that her best friend would know.

"Taylor, have you seen Troy?"

"Uh, yeah, Chad took him home about, I don't know, fifteen minutes ago."

"Shit. I need to talk to him."

"Finally admitting to liking him?" Gabriella blushed and nodded, receiving a squeal from her best friend. "Seriously?" Gabriella nodded again. "I can't believe this."

"Why did he leave?"

"He said he saw you and Ryan kissing and that pushed him to the edge. Why did you kiss Ryan? And is it true that you're his girlfriend now?"

"I was, but we thought it would be better to just stay friends. The kiss…it just didn't feel right."

"Let me guess, Troy's did?" Gabriella nodded and blushed slightly.

Chad walked back into the gym and Gabriella ran up to him. "Chad, you have to take me to Troy's."

"I just…"

"Please, Chad. It's important."

Chad sighed and nodded. "Fine."

-

-

The doorbell rung loud and clear through the empty house. His parents were visiting family so he was left all on his own. It rung again and he found he couldn't ignore it anymore. He left his room and went to answer the door. He was surprised to see Gabriella standing in front of him. She was surprised to see him still in his formal attire.

"What are you doing here?" he asked bitterly.

She took a deep breath before answering. "To tell you that it didn't feel right," she said, knowing he knew what she meant. "And to give you this." Without any further warning, she leant up and crushed her lips against his. His hands grabbed her waist in shock, but once it wore off, he found himself kissing her back.

When they pulled back for air, he looked into her eyes. "Why?"

She smiled. "Because it feels right."

He smiled and kissed her again, her hands wrapping around his neck and pulling him closer. "You still owe me a dance, you know that right?" he asked against her lips.

"I know." He took her hand and led her inside, closing the door behind her. He walked over to the stereo and turned on the first slow song he could find, which just so happened to be Nsync's _God Must Have Spent A Little More Time On You_. He walked back over to her and held out his hand.

"May I have this dance?"

She smiled and placed her hand in his. "You may." He pulled her close to him and wrapped his arms around her waist. Her arms snaked around his neck and the two stared into each other's eyes.

"You don't know how long I've waited for this."

"I think I can take a guess."

He grinned, reaching up to brush a strand of hair out of her face. He, then, placed his hand on her cheek and caressed it softly. She leaned into his touch, her eyes closing to relish the feeling. Her eyes opened once more, brown staring into blue, before he leaned in, placing a gentle kiss on her lips.

**A/N: that song was playing when I wrote that part so I thought it fitting to put it in. And then after that 'Can I Have This Dance' came on. lol. I know a lot of you probably didn't want him to forgive her, but I think they've both been enough torture already.**


	17. Chapter 17

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: not mine_**

**A/N: here you go, a chapter full of Troyella fluff.**

_Chapter 17_

He still couldn't believe this was real. His body swayed to the music as his arms held onto the girl that had her head resting against his chest. The music had long ago stopped, but the two continued to dance to the music in their heads. Placing a kiss to the top of her head, he breathed in the scent of her shampoo and tried to remember the smell of her.

"Troy?" She pulled back slightly and looked up at him.

"Hm?"

"I think I should be getting home now. My mom's probably worried about me." He looked at the clock on the wall and noticed it was almost one in the morning.

"How long were we dancing without music?"

She giggled. "A while."

He smiled and looked back at her. "I guess our internal radio goes on longer than the regular one."

She nodded and reached up, pushing his bangs from in front of his eyes. "So are you gonna take me home, or not?"

"Let me change and I'll take you."

"Okay."

He kissed her cheek before whispering, "Be right back." He left her alone in the living room and went to go change into regular clothes. Gabriella sat on the couch and waited for him to return. When he came back, he outstretched his hand and helped her on her feet, escorting her out to his car.

Minutes later, they pulled up to Gabriella's house and she looked over at him, a soft smile playing on her lips. "Thanks…for dropping me off."

"Thank you for forgiving me," he said, turning to her. "You're amazing, you know that?"

She smiled and shook her head. "I know the reason why you didn't bring a date to prom. I also know that you could have gotten a date in time for it."

"I guess Taylor is more observant than I give her credit for."

"Your life didn't have to stop because of me."

He reached over and touched her cheek. "My life did have to stop because of you. You are my life."

She grinned and he leaned in, capturing her lips in his. "I should go," she said, pulling away.

He nodded. "How about I take you out today?"

"Sure."

"I'll pick you up at noon?"

She nodded and kissed him once more. "I'll see you then."

She climbed out of his car and closed the door behind her. He watched her make her way to her front door and disappear inside before he drove home.

-

-

"Where is it?" Gabriella searched everywhere for her right shoe, but she couldn't find it. A knock came at her door and she turned to it, a smile reaching her lips when she saw Troy. "Hey."

"Hey."

"How did you get in?"

"Your mom."

"She didn't question you, did she?"

"No. Why?"

"That means she'll be questioning me later."

"Why's that?"

"Well…for the past three or four years, I've done nothing, but complain about you to her."

He chuckled. "That's understandable." She went back to looking for her shoe and he gave her a confused look. "What are you looking for?"

"My shoe."

"What does it look like?"

"It's white with…"

"A bow on the front?"

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"Cause it's sitting right here near your night table." She looked at him before looking beside her night table and sure enough, there it was as clear as day.

"Why didn't I notice it before?"

"Cause your eyes aren't as good as mine." Her eyes narrowed and she went to get her shoe before walking up to him and hitting him playfully on the arm. "Ow. What was that for?"

"To deflate that ego of yours."

He grinned and grabbed her by the waist. "You know you like it," he whispered before kissing her neck.

She giggled and pulled herself out of his arms. "Yeah, yeah." She slipped on her shoe and went to grab her purse.

"Ready?" She nodded and followed him downstairs.

He ushered her out to his car, not without the questioning looks of her mother. Gabriella smiled at her mother and pleaded with her eyes for her not to say anything. Her mother nodded, but her look said "we'll talk later". Troy drove them to Tingley Beach Park that was situated on the bank of the Rio Grande. Putting the car in park and turning it off, he went around to the passenger side and helped her out.

"I don't think I've ever been here," she said as she looked around.

"Really? I used to come here all the time with my parents." He took her hand in his and led her towards the central pond.

"It's so beautiful here." He glanced over at her and smiled at the serene look on her face. If someone would have told him he would be dating Gabriella two weeks ago, he would have laughed in their face. This was something he had only dreamed about and now it was his reality. So lost in his thoughts, he didn't notice she was now looking at him, confusion on her face. "What?" she asked and he broke out of his trance.

He shook his head, smiling softly. "Nothing."

"No, seriously. What?"

He chuckled and took her other hand, making her face him completely. He pulled her closer and wrapped her arms around his neck. "You're beautiful," he said before kissing her lightly. When he pulled away, she looked at him, a soft blush on her face.

"You really think so?"

"I don't think, I know. You." He kissed her cheek. "Are." He kissed her other cheek. "Beautiful." He kissed her lips, lingering longer than the first time. "How about we go to the botanical gardens?"

She gasped and nodded. He chuckled and led her to the train that takes people back and forth between Tingley Beach Park, the Albuquerque Aquarium, the Rio Grande Zoo and the Rio Grande Botanical Garden. Once they reached the stop for the botanical garden, they got off and he paid for their tickets.

This date was going better than either of them thought. Gabriella never thought she would enjoy Troy's presence like she was at that moment. She never thought she would actually be out on a date with him at all. She always thought that she would rather kiss a pig than him, but now she found that kissing him wasn't so bad.

"So, Gabriella," he started and she turned to him. "There's something I wanted to ask you."

"What is it?"

"I, uh, I wanted to know if you would…" He stuck his hands in his pockets and looked away. "If you would be my girlfriend?"

She smiled and kissed his cheek. "I'd love to."

He looked back at her, a stunned smile on his face. _She said 'yes'? She actually said 'yes'._ He grabbed her by the waist and hoisted her up, spinning her around. She giggled and held onto his shoulders. He put her back on her feet before pressing his lips to hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck and played with the short hairs on the back of his neck. His tongue swept across her bottom lip and she willingly opened her mouth, letting the pink appendage in. He touched his tongue to hers and she moaned against his lip. He smirked and did it again, this time her tongue reciprocating the action.

The two made out for the next few minutes unaware of the passing onlookers; some thinking it was sweet, others thinking it wasn't right for public display. Troy could care less about what they thought. All that mattered was that Gabriella Montez had just agreed to be his girlfriend. If he died at that moment, he would say that he was happy with his life.


	18. Chapter 18

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: Not mine...yet :)_**

**A/N: with two stories down and four to go, I think I'm at a pretty good spot. Okay, I have a poll that I want you guys to take in my profile. It will determine future stories.**

_Chapter 18_

"I had so much fun today," Gabriella said as she leaned against the surface of her front door.

"So does that mean we'll be doing this again one day?" Troy asked leaning close to her.

"Well, I am your girlfriend now so I hope so." He smirked and kissed her softly. Her hands found his hair and tangled themselves in his auburn locks. When they pulled away for air, he leaned his forehead against hers and she rubbed her nose against his. "I should get inside before my mother comes looking for me."

He nodded. "I'll call you later?"

"Yeah." She pecked his lips before watching him walk back to his car and drive off. Smiling, she went inside and prepared herself to be bombarded with questions from her mother.

"So you wanna explain this to me?" her mother asked, leaning against the frame of the entrance leading to the living room.

"What's there to explain?"

"What happened to Ryan? I thought you liked him."

"We decided to just stay friends. It didn't feel right."

"But isn't this guy the one you've been complaining about since you started high school?"

"Yes, but he's changed."

"Changed? Gabriella, just a month ago you were angry at something he had done and now you're hanging out with him like you're close friends."

"Actually…we're dating."

"Dating? When did this happen?"

"Today. He asked me to be his girlfriend."

"Mija, I know I've raised you better than this."

"Mom, he likes me, he's always liked me, he just had a weird way of showing it."

"Oh so making you cry is his way of showing he likes you?" She looked away from her mother, trying not to relive the day that she had came home bawling because of a stupid prank Troy had pulled on her. "Gabi, how can you possibly think he likes you after all he's put you through?"

"Because he's shown me a different side to him. All of today he's been nothing but a gentleman to me. He really does like me, mom. Actually he doesn't like me, he loves me."

Her mother's eyes widened at the statement. "And…do you…love _him_?"

Gabriella smiled softly and nodded. "I do."

"Mija," she said with a sigh.

"I don't care what you think of him, I love him and that's all that matters to me." She ended the conversation by sprinting up the stairs to her room.

-

-

Gabriella stood in front of her open locker, packing her bag for the first half of the school day. Her mind was still on last night. She knew her mother would be like this. She also knew she was just trying to protect her. But Gabriella knew her heart and it trusted Troy.

"Good morning, beautiful." She grinned as his arms wrapped around her waist and his chin rested on her shoulder.

"Morning to you, too, handsome."

He chuckled and kissed her cheek. "So how did it go with your mom?"

"Ugh."

"Not so good?"

"No," she sighed. "She thinks that you're lying about having feelings for me."

"You don't think that, do you?"

She turned around in his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Of course I don't. I know what you feel for me is real."

He smiled and kissed her. A loud gasp rung through the hallway and the two broke apart, turning their heads to see everyone staring with wide eyes at them.

"What?" she asked.

"Oh, come on. Don't pretend like you didn't see this coming." No one answered, but no one moved. "Okay show's over. Get on with your lives." Still no one moved. "Now!" Troy yelled and everyone started pretending like they didn't see what had just happened.

"We should have known people were going to act like that."

"I guess seeing us together is strange compared to seeing us fighting."

She giggled. "I'm still getting use to that."

"I'm not," he said lowly, a serious expression on his face. "I'm glad we're not fighting."

She smiled softly. "I'm glad we're not fighting either."

"You know, I've never told you this…or showed it for that matter, but every time I hurt you, I ended up feeling extremely guilty afterwards. Seeing you upset broke my heart even though I never wanted to admit it to anyone or myself."

"Really?"

He nodded. "Really." He leaned his forehead against hers and looked straight into her eyes. "I've loved you from the moment I laid eyes on you, I was just too prideful to admit it and I just blocked it out as it kept building over time."

"I wish my mother would see the you that I've been seeing for the past twenty-four hours. Maybe then, she'll see why I love you."

Shock ran through him, not believing she had spoken those three little words that meant so much. "You…you _love_ me?"

She bit her lip, not realizing she had said it. She nodded, brown looking into blue. "I do. I have since we started tutoring each other and you showed me the side of you that I hadn't seen before. I was just afraid to admit it and I wasn't really sure if you felt the same way."

His eyes searched hers, deeply, before he crushed his lips to hers. This time, no gasp came to stop them short and they were free to continue in bliss.

-

-

"So how does it feel?" Chad asked as he sat next to Troy at lunch.

"How does what feel?"

"Being with Gabriella."

"How did you know?"

"Dude, I was the one that drove her to your house. I know you two got together."

Troy smiled. "Truthfully? It feels damn good."

"It better. So what happened?"

"Nothing, we just went out Saturday."

"And you call that 'nothing'?"

"Well, no, because she did agree to be my girlfriend."

"Alright."

"But you should have seen it this morning. We kissed in the hallway and everyone went into shock."

Chad chuckled. "What do you expect? They're not use to seeing you two getting along, much less kissing."

"Yeah, but they should have saw it coming."

"_Please_, no one saw this coming. Sure, everyone knew you had a long time crush on Gabriella, but no one thought you were going to act on it. Besides, we weren't sure if she felt the same way."

"Well, I'm glad it turned out this way. She told me she loved me today."

"Really? That's awesome."

"Yeah it is." His smile quickly disappeared.

"You don't seem too excited."

"It's not that I'm not, it's just…her mom thinks that I don't like her. She thinks I'm lying."

"Well, Gabriella doesn't think so, right?"

"No, she doesn't."

"Then that's all you should be worried about."

"I know, but if I'm ever going to have a future with Gabriella, her mom has to like me."

"Whoa, talk about thinking ahead."

Troy grinned and shrugged slightly. "I can't help it."

"Look, buddy, over time, her mother's going to see that you really do like her and if you two end up getting married in the future, she'll see that your feelings are true."

"But that doesn't mean she has to like me."

"She will if she doesn't want to create a rift between herself and Gabriella."

"I guess you're right."

"Speaking of Gabriella…" Troy turned his head and spotted his girlfriend and her best friend looking around for a place to sit. "Yo, Taylor! Gabriella! Over here!"

The two girls smiled and walked over to their respective boyfriends, sitting down next to them.

"Hey, guys," Gabriella said before leaning over and kissing Troy square on the lips.

Taylor squealed and giggled. "I still can't believe you two finally got together."

They both smiled brightly and he lazily wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "Well, believe it," he said before looking at her. "Cause there's no one else I'd rather be with."

**A/N: lol. no that's not the end of the story.**


	19. Chapter 19

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: Yea, right_**

**A/N:The drama surrounding Gabriella's mother's dislike towards Troy will end soon. not in this chapter, but soon. Also I am upset because I only received three reviews for chapter 3 of 'Never Far Behind' and it wasn't even reviewed in the same day it was uploaded. I thank the three people who did, but it's still upsetting.**

_Chapter 19_

"So what school are you going to?" Troy asked as he stared at the ceiling and played with the strands of her hair.

"I'm not even sure yet," she answered as she listened to his heart beat within his chest.

"Don't the schools have an admissions deadlines?"

"Yeah, but for the schools that I actually want to attend, a response isn't due until June." She looked up at him. "What about you? Where are you going?"

"Probably U of A."

"Is that where you really want to go?"

He shrugged. "It's been the school I've wanted to go to since I was five, so I guess."

She lifted her head off his chest and looked down at him. "Troy, if it's not where you wanna go, then don't go."

"It's not that I don't wanna go, I just…I don't know, I don't wanna be someplace that you're not. I guess I've grown attached to you."

She grinned. "I'd hope so." He smiled and stroked her cheek with his thumb. "But seriously, Troy, this is your future."

"I know, but I can always transfer to your school if I can't take being away from you."

"And what if you can't get into the school I'm going to?"

"Then I'll transfer to a school that's close to yours."

She smiled. "You're a hopeless romantic, aren't you?"

"When I wanna be, yeah." She giggled softly before leaning in and placing her lips on his. As his mouth moved against hers, he reached up and tangled his hand in her hair, pulling her closer.

"Troy I…" The two quickly broke apart at the sound of Troy's mother's voice. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize you had company," she said, smiling.

"Uh, mom, you remember Gabriella."

"Of course. It's nice to see you again, Gabriella."

"You, too, Mrs. Bolton." The woman nodded before leaving the two teenagers alone. "I should go."

"Already?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I don't want my mother getting ideas." She rolled off of him and stood up, grabbing her bag.

"Shall I give you a ride?"

"Sure." He stood up and ushered her out to his car. "Thanks for the ride," she said when they were parked in her driveway.

"You're welcome."

She leaned over and kissed him. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye." He watched her get out and walked up the path to her front door. She turned and waved before he made his way back to his house.

Gabriella walked through the front door and started on her way to her room. "Where have you been?" her mother asked as she came out of the dining room.

"At Troy's house, you know, my _boyfriend_."

"Mija, I don't want to see you get hurt."

"I won't. He's not the guy you think he is."

"You mean the guy you've been telling me about for the past four years?"

"What will it take for you to see he's changed?"

"When you prove it to me." Gabriella scoffed and ran up to her room, slamming her door behind her.

-

-

Troy walked into the kitchen and hopped onto the counter, watching his mother cook.

"So you finally got a girlfriend," she said without turning to him.

"You act like I haven't had a girlfriend before."

"I know you have, but none that's made you this happy before." Troy grinned, knowing his mother was right. "So when will you have her over for dinner?"

"Dinner?"

"Of course. It would only be right for your father and I to get to know her."

"Well, dad knows her already."

"He knows who she is. He doesn't actually know her. Just invite her to dinner tomorrow and let us get better acquainted."

He sighed and nodded. "Okay, mom, but only because you asked me to," he said and hopped off the counter.

She turned to him and smiled. "Thank you, sweetheart," she said and kissed his forehead.

"Mom," he whined.

"Oh, please. It's not like there's anyone here to see."

He grinned. "Well, I'm going to go call Gabriella."

"Okay. Tell her I said 'hi'."

"I will." He went to his room and picked up his cell phone, dialing her number.

"_Hello?"_

"Hey, Gabriella."

"_Hey, Troy. Didn't I just get rid of you?" _she asked jokingly.

"You can never get rid of me." She giggled and his heart soared.

"_So what did you call me for?"_

"My mom has invited you to dinner."

"_Really? Already?"_

"Yea. She wants to get to know you."

"_Well, I have to ask my mom, but tell her 'I'll be there'."_

"Really?"

"_Of course."_ A faint yell was heard in the background and she sighed. _"Troy, I gotta go."_

"Okay. I'll see you tomorrow."

"_Kay. Love you."_

He grinned. "I love you, too." He ended the call and laid back on his bed, staring at the ceiling.

-

-

Dinner at the Montez' was quiet. Gabriella had nothing to say to her mother and her mother had nothing to say to her. But she knew she had to ask her mother's permission to go over to Troy's house for dinner the next night.

"Troy's mom invited me to dinner tomorrow," she said and her mother looked at her. "Can I go?"

Her mother sighed and nodded, knowing that even though she didn't approve of her daughter dating him, it would be rude to decline an invitation with his parents. "Fine, but don't stay out too late."

"I won't."

"And since his mother invited you to dinner, I expect that he will be having dinner here one day."

Gabriella lifted her gaze to her mother, shocked that her mother would suggest that. "Mom?"

"You said you wanted me to see that he isn't the same guy that's been torturing you for the past four years. In order to do that, I must see it, so invite him to dinner and let me see for myself."

She nodded and smiled. "Thanks for giving him a chance."

Her mother nodded and went back to eating in silence.

-

-

Troy stood against his girlfriend's locker, waiting for her to appear. He grinned when he spotted her walking towards him, her own smile on her face.

"Hey," she said as she stepped up to him.

"Good morning." He kissed her lips before moving so she could get into her locker. "So what did your mom say?"

"She said I can go."

"Alright."

"But she also wants you to come over for dinner."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah. She wants to give you a chance to prove yourself."

"Well, I'm looking forward to it. I want her to like me, I really do."

Gabriella closed her locker and turned to him. "I want her to like you, too." She took his hand in hers and he lifted it to his mouth, kissing her knuckles. She grinned and he wrapped an arm around her shoulder, ushering her to homeroom.


	20. Chapter 20

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: If I don't own Troy Bolton by now, I probably won't own him anytime soon_**

**A/N: OMG!!! I saw Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen and it was AMAZING. It was 2 hours and 30 minutes long, but it was worth it. There were a few plot loopholes, but I think that's done dilberately so they can do a third. But I loved every minute of it. I went to the twelve thirty showing this morning and didn't get home until after four-thirty. I suggest everyone go see it.**

_Chapter 20_

Gabriella stood in the window of the living room, waiting for Troy to arrive. She bit her lip in anticipation, nervousness and excitement going through her. When she saw his car pull up in the driveway, she moved away from the window and went into the front closet to grab her shoes. The doorbell rung seconds later and she hastily pulled it open.

Troy grinned. "Someone's anxious."

"No," she said with a shake of her head. "Just nervous."

He chuckled and pulled her into his arms. "Everything will be okay." He lifted her chin with his fingers and kissed her lips softly.

She smiled. "I feel better already."

"Ready to go?"

She nodded. "Bye mom!" she called before closing the door behind her.

-

-

Gabriella's nerves had grown by the time they reached his house. She didn't know why she was nervous. His mother seemed nice enough and she'd known his father for the past four years. Nerves should have been the last thing she was feeling, but it wasn't. Sensing her desperation, he took her hand and laced her fingers with his.

"There's nothing to be nervous about."

"I know. I just can't help it." He kissed her knuckles and she smiled gratefully.

"Mom! Dad!" Troy called as they walked through the front door.

"Your mother's in the kitchen," Jack said from the living room. He turned and looked at his son and his son's girlfriend, still not believing the couple was real. "I still don't know how you two happened since I remember you two making each other's lives a living hell."

"We, uh, worked things out," Gabriella said, shrugging.

He grinned. "I'm glad. I was getting tired of you two bickering all the time."

Lucille Bolton appeared from the kitchen and smiled at the two teenagers. "I'm so glad you could come," she said, holding out her hand to Gabriella.

"It's nice to see you again, Mrs. Bolton." Gabriella shook hands with the older woman and smiled.

"Please call me Lucille. Dinner will be ready in a few minutes," she said before going back into the kitchen.

"Your mom's been cooking like a mad woman," Jack commented as he flipped through the channels on the television.

"I heard that!" Lucille called.

"You know it's true, dear."

"Keep making fun of me and you won't get anything to eat tonight."

Jack turned around, his eyes wide. "You wouldn't do that. You couldn't possibly starve your own husband."

Lucille walked back into the living room, hands on her hips. "I can. You know how to order a pizza don't you?"

"Yeah, but I like your cooking so much better."

"Then stop making fun of me."

"Okay. I'll stop."

She smiled and turned to Gabriella. "See. You gotta know how to make men submit. It's the only way to get them to listen."

Gabriella giggled lightly. "I'll keep that advice in mind."

"Should I be worried that my girlfriend is taking advice from my mom?" Troy asked.

"Yes, you should, son," Jack answered. "Yes, you should."

"Uh-oh. Um…we're gonna be in my room," he said before pulling Gabriella in the direction of his bedroom.

"Keep the door open," his mother said before going back in the kitchen.

"Kay." He pulled his girlfriend into his room and closed the door slightly.

"I thought she said to leave the door open," she said as she took a seat on his bed.

"It is open, just not all the way," he responded, walking towards her.

She grinned. "You always know how to find a way around everything, don't you?"

"Most of the time." He placed his hands on either side of her and leaned in close to her face. "Though I haven't gotten a chance to find my way around you."

She rolled her eyes, but still grinned. "You're such a pervert."

"I can't help it if it's the truth. Besides," he rubbed his nose against hers, "I would _love_ to find my way around you."

"Really?" she asked, biting her lip in the process.

"Yeah."

"Well, you're gonna have to wait awhile."

"Oh? And why's that?"

"Because I don't plan on having that happen until after I'm married."

He backed away, standing up straight. "What?"

She giggled and stood up, wrapping her arms around his neck. "I'm kidding."

He looked into her eyes. "Are you really?"

"Yeah. I've thought about saving myself for marriage, but then I just decided to wait until I'm with the right person."

"And how would you know you're with the right person?" he asked, placing his hands on her waist.

She shrugged. "I'd just know."

"Hm." He kissed her softly. "Am I the right person?"

"It's too early to tell, but I think so."

He nodded and kissed her again. As the innocent kiss turned passionate, he wrapped his arms around her waist, placing one hand on her back. It wasn't long before that hand moved into her hair, grasping her dark locks between his fingers. He loved the feeling of her hair against his skin.

"Dinner's ready!"

-

-

"So, Gabriella, what are your plans for college?" Lucille asked as she raised her fork to her mouth, a piece of chicken on the end.

"Um…well, I wanna go to a college on the East Coast, you know to get away from the desert sun, so I applied for Cambridge, Yale, NYU and a few others."

"Wow," Jack said before turning to Troy. "Looks like you've snagged you a smart one. She's a keeper. Better than those airheads you used to bring around."

"Jack," Lucille said sternly.

"What? It's true."

Troy chuckled nervously and Gabriella smiled softly, grabbing his knee and squeezing it, telling him it was okay. He smiled back and took her hand in his. One thing was for sure, his dad was right, she was a keeper.

"So have you heard from any of them?"

"Yeah. I've heard from Yale and Princeton."

"And?"

"I got into both of them."

Lucille squealed and Gabriella giggled, feeling like she was a part of the family. "If you got into all of them, which one would you chose?"

"Um…probably Yale."

"Why Yale?" Jack asked.

"Well, because I've always loved New York City, that's why I applied for NYU, but the campus is directly in the city and I don't want to be in the middle of everything. New Haven, where Yale is, is only an hour and a half outside of the city by train, so it would only make sense to choose it."

The three Bolton's nodded in agreement. Soon dinner was over and Lucille was cleaning off the table.

"Would you like some help, Mrs. Bolton?"

"Oh, no dear, you're the guest and _please_, call me Lucille." Gabriella nodded and smiled.

"Here, mom, I'll help you," Troy said before getting up and helping his mother clear off the table.

"Thank you, Troy."

When the two disappeared into the kitchen, Jack turned to Gabriella. "I don't know if you know this, but you've changed him."

Gabriella quirked an eyebrow. "I have?"

He nodded. "Very much so. He's gotten better in school, he's stepped up his game in basketball. He's like a whole new person. And I just have to thank you for that."

She smiled softly. "You're welcome, Coach Bolton."

He chuckled before standing up. "In my house, you can just call me Jack."

"Alright, Jack." He sent her smile that screamed 'Troy' before disappearing into the living room. Now she knew where Troy got his looks from. Just looking at Jack Bolton, Gabriella could see the similarities between the father and son.

"Where did my husband get to?" Lucille asked as she and Troy walked back into the room.

"Living room," she said plainly as Troy retook his place beside her and grasped her hand.

Lucille sighed. "Jack Bolton if you do _not_ pull yourself away from that television I will do it for you."

"Aw, honey, come on. The game's on."

"You do realize that it's an old game?"

"Of course."

Gabriella laughed quietly. She never had a chance to experience this kind of interaction between her parents. Her father had walked out on her and her mother when Gabriella was a baby and she never knew who he was. Pictures were the only way she knew what he looked like.

"Anyway. Who's up for desert?"

"I am!" Jack called.

"You're not getting any."

"Why not?"

"Because you won't stop watching the damn television."

"Aw. Come on. Please."

"No." She turned her attention to the two teens.

Troy looked at Gabriella and she shook her head slightly. "Uh, no thanks, ma."

"You sure?"

"Yeah," Gabriella said. "It's getting late anyway. I better get home." She stood up, Troy following suit.

"Alright. It was nice having you here," Lucille said, wrapping her arms around the petite brunette.

"It was nice being here, Lucille."

Pulling back, the mother of Gabriella's boyfriend smile warmly. "I'm glad Troy finally found a girl like you."

Gabriella blushed slightly. "Um. Thank you, I think."

Lucille laughed and gave Gabriella another hug before letting them leave.

"Bye, Jack," Gabriella said as they passed by the living room.

"See you at school, Gabriella."

Troy took Gabriella's hand and led her out the door.

-

-

"So, you call my dad 'Jack' now?" Troy asked as they walked towards her house. It was a nice evening, not too hot, not too cold, so Troy decided to walk her home.

"He said I could, so yeah."

He smiled. "I'm sorry about my mom. Ever since that day she walked in on us making out, she's been talking about you non-stop."

"She has?"

"Yeah. She thinks I've finally come to my senses and chosen a girl that is good for me."

"Well, haven't you?" she asked with a smile.

He nodded and looked at her. "I have." He stopped and pulled her to him, placing his hand on the base of her head where her neck begins. "And I'm glad I did."

She smiled softly and placed her hand on his. He leaned in and kissed her. He could never tire of kissing her because every time he did, he could feel this jolt of electricity shoot through him. He loved the feeling she brought him, the warmth that spread over him whenever they touched.

He pulled back, resting his forehead against hers and rubbing the tip of their noses together. "I love you."

She grinned. "I love you, too."

He kissed her once more before they continued their walk to her house.

When they reached her front door, Troy grabbed her hips and pulled them to his. He captured her lips in a soft kiss, caressing her mouth with his. Seconds, that felt like minutes, later, he pulled back and looked into her mocha eyes.

"Does my princess wish for her chariot to drive her to school in the morning?" he asked and watched her mouth curve into a small smile.

She wrapped her arms around his neck. "She does, but only if her prince promises her another kiss." He smiled and pecked her lips. "That is not the kiss I was asking for."

He chuckled before leaning in once more, placing a more passionate embrace on her lips. "Does that please my princess?"

"It does, very much."

"Well, then…goodnight, my love."

She ran her hand through his hair. "Goodnight," she said softly.

He removed himself from her arms and she watched as he walked back the path, her eyes staying on him until she could no longer see him. With a small smile, she walked into her house, thinking of him and only him.

**A/N: I used Yale for a reason and that's because Yale is the university that Sam attends in Transformers. I call it my own personal tribute. lol. Next chapter will be the dinner date with Gabriella's mom.**


	21. Chapter 21

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: HAHA! yeah right_**

**A/N: and so...life goes on.**

_Chapter 21_

Gabriella was nervous. Tonight was the night that she would have to watch her mother silently scrutinize her boyfriend. Although it was her mother who suggested having Troy over for dinner, Gabriella knew that it was with much reluctance. She wasn't truly interested in giving Troy a chance, she just wanted to find more reasons as to why Gabriella shouldn't be with him.

Leaning her head against the cool surface of her locker door, she closed her eyes and prayed to God that her mother wouldn't make a scene. Seconds later, she felt two arms wrap around her and she smiled.

"Hey, Babe."

"Hey." She leaned off the locker and into him.

"You okay?"

She sighed and shook her head. "No."

"What's wrong?"

"I have a bad feeling about tonight. I feel like my mom isn't going to be all smiles and open arms during dinner like your mom was."

"Well, I understand why. I haven't exactly been the nicest person to you in the past four years."

"Yeah, but I forgave you. Why can't she trust me enough and forgive you, too?"

"Because she's your mom. She's protecting you. But don't worry, I'll show her that I really do have feelings for you and that you mean the world to me."

Gabriella smiled and turned in his arms. "You're such a romantic."

He shrugged. "When I wanna be, yeah."

She giggled before grabbing his hand and pulling him towards their homeroom. As they approached the classroom, he pulled her back and took her face in his hands, pressing his lips to hers.

"What was that for?" she asked.

"Just because I wanted to."

-

-

Standing in front of her mirror, Gabriella scanned her appearance, making sure nothing was out of place. Hearing the doorbell ring, she quickly ran downstairs to answer the door. She opened it with a smile, stepping back to let her boyfriend in.

"Don't you look beautiful," he said before kissing her cheek.

"Thank you. You don't look half-bad yourself."

He chuckled. "Well I gotta look good for my favorite girl."

As the exchange went on, neither noticed the middle-aged Latina standing nearby until she cleared her throat. Gabriella looked in the direction of her mother, her smile faltering. Taking Troy's hand, she could clearly see her mother looking him over, judging him silently within her mind.

"Mom, you remember Troy."

"Ah, yes, the boy that's been terrorizing my daughter."

"Mom," she whined.

Not wanting her words to get to him, he kept his smile on his face and outstretched his hand. "It's nice to meet you, Ms. Montez."

She looked at his hand then at him. "Uh-huh. Dinner's ready." She walked away and he retracted his hand, turning his eyes to Gabriella.

She sent him an apologetic smile before leading him into the dining room. She wished her mother wouldn't act this way. She wanted her to like him. She knew that it was her motherly nature, but did she have to be like this?

Troy pulled out her chair for her and she smiled gratefully before taking her seat. He, then, took his place next to her, locking their hands together. When her mother reentered, she placed the plates of food in front of the two teenagers before taking her seat.

"So, _Troy_," her mother started as she brought a forkful of rice to her lips, "do you wanna explain to me why you've been tormenting my daughter for the past four years?"

"Mami," Gabriella whined and Troy squeezed her hand.

"It's okay, Gabriella." He cleared his throat. "Well, Ms. Montez, I, uh, I can't really explain why. I'm not even sure, myself, why I did it. I think it was because I wasn't willing to admit to myself that I actually had feelings for her."

Turning her eyes to her mother, Gabriella looked for any sign that she believed Troy. She, however, was unreadable. Her brown eyes were distant and her face void of any emotions.

"Well, as much as I would like to believe that, I don't."

"I understand that perfectly, Ms. Montez. I haven't been the greatest person in the world when it comes to your daughter, but I want to now. She means a lot to me." Gabriella turned to Troy and smiled softly.

"What are your plans for college?" she asked, changing the subject, for which Gabriella felt grateful.

"Well, at the moment, I've gotten accepted to the University of Albuquerque on a basketball scholarship."

Raising an eyebrow, Ms. Montez reached for her glass. "Basketball?"

"Yeah, Troy's the captain of the basketball team," Gabriella answered.

"Ex-captain actually. Now that the season's over and I'm graduating, I'm no longer captain."

"So what are you going to major in?"

"Um, well I'm not sure. I've always wanted to go pro, so that's probably what I'm going to be focusing on."

Ms. Montez nodded and Gabriella could literally see the disapproving look in her eyes. Sighing, she began eating her food in silence. She and Troy never dropped hands throughout the rest of the dinner.

"Gabriella, can you help me in the kitchen?" she asked as she began clearing the table.

"Sure, mom." She got up and grabbed her plate and Troy's before walking into the kitchen behind her mother. Setting the plates in the sink, she turned her mother. "Why don't you like him?"

"You know why?"

"Mom, why can't you let the past be the past?"

"Because, mija, someone who treated you the way he did has no right to gain my trust, besides he's not good enough for you."

"Not good enough for me? How would you know?"

"He doesn't have a plan-B. He thinks that he'll be able to get by with just basketball."

"That doesn't mean he's not good enough for me."

"Yes, it does. I'll be damned if my daughter gets involved with a guy who has no future for himself."

"Why can't you just accept that I love him? Why can't you just be happy for me?"

"I'll be happy for you when you find a guy who's actually worthy of you."

Shaking her head, Gabriella tried to hold back her tears. "I never thought of you as a bitch…until now."

"You take that back, young lady," she said as Gabriella left the kitchen. "Gabriella!" Passing by a worried Troy, she made her way to the stairs. "Gabriella Denise Montez, you stop right there!" She stopped and turned around. "Now, you take back what you said."

"I can't mom. I can't take it back until you stop being a bitch and let me be with who I wanna be with." Gabriella turned and ran up the stairs to her room, slamming her door.

Ms. Montez turned and faced a concerned Troy. "Well, do you see what you've done?" she asked and he looked at her, confusion written on his face. "You just destroy everyone's lives, don't you?" She pushed past him and went into the kitchen.

Sighing, Troy looked up the stairs before climbing it two-by-two. He walked up to Gabriella's door and knocked on it gently.

"Gabriella?" He listened, hearing sobs coming from the other side of the door. "Gabriella, it's me. Can I come in?"

The door opened seconds later and Troy felt his heart breaking for the girl in front of him. She quickly wrapped her arms around his neck and cried into his shoulder. Bending down slightly, he put his hand behind her knees and lifted her up, carrying her into her room bridal style. He took a seat on her bed and placed her in his lap. He rubbed circles against her side, attempting to calm her down.

"Shh, it's gonna be okay."

"Why can't she just accept you? Why doesn't she trust me enough?"

He kissed her temple. "That's an answer only she knows." The conversation ended there and he continued to listen to her broken sobs as he held her close.

This rift between mother and daughter had been caused because of him and could only be fixed by him. He didn't want Gabriella to hate her mother. He didn't want them to stop speaking, especially since they were so close to graduation. He took her hand in his and kissed the back of it.

"Gabriella…maybe we should…"

She looked up at him. "Maybe we should what?"

He sighed. "End this."

"What?" She sat up, her eyes scanning his. "You can't be serious."

"I am."

"But…but why?"

"Because I don't want you to go away to college for the first time and be mad at your mother. Ending this will help you fix things with her just in time for you to head to the East Coast."

"You can't expect me to let you go," she said, placing her hand on his cheek. "I love you too much to let you go."

He smiled and wiped a tear from her face. "I know and I love you, too, but I don't want to be the one that keeps you from confiding in your mother when you need her."

"Please, don't do this." A fresh batch of tears flowed from her eyes. "Please…I need you."

Cupping her cheek, he kissed her lips softly. "I'll always be here when you need me."

She moved into a kneeling position, straddling his waist, and grabbed his face, kissing him. "I need you now. I need you to be with me."

"This is for the better. Maybe somewhere down the line, we'll be together again." He grabbed her hands and pulled them away from his face. "I love you, Gabriella."

She gave him a watery smile. "I love you, too, Troy." He kissed her once more before removing himself from her. He stood up and turned to her, mouthing out 'bye' before leaving. "Bye," she said softly.

She listened as his footsteps descended the stairs followed by the sound of the front door closing. At that, Gabriella broke down, her heart shattering into a million pieces.

"Gabriella?"

"Go away."

Her mother slowly walked into the room and took a seat beside her daughter. "Gabriella, what happened?" she asked as she put her hand on Gabriella's shoulder.

"He broke up with me!" she yelled, shrugging her mother's hand off. "Are you happy now?" She moved so she was sitting against her headboard and brought her legs up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them.

"Gabriella…I'm sorry."

"No you're not. This is what you wanted. Remember?"

"No, I wanted you to break up with him. I didn't want him to break your heart." She shook her head. "Isn't he good for anything else but hurting you?"

Gabriella glared at her mother. "You. Don't. Get it."

"Excuse me?"

"You don't fucking get it. He broke up with me because of you. He ended it for your sake."

"What?" She was beyond shocked.

Shaking her head, Gabriella turned her head towards her balcony. "Just forget it."

"Gabriella…"

She sighed and leaned her forehead against her knees. "Leave me alone."

Without another word, her mother stood and walked towards the door. Reaching the doorframe, she turned slightly, ready to say something more, but her better judgment told her not to and she left the room, listening to her daughter's heartbroken cries as she walked down the hallway to her room.

**A/N: I know a lot of you are probably like 'Why?' and well, love is about sacrifices. Boyfriends come and go but family is forever. Troy knows that and that's why he did what he did, but it also proves how much he really loves her. Besides, being in a relationship where your parent or parents don't approve isn't the best of relationships and will cause problems in the future. But don't worry, the story's not over yet.**


	22. Chapter 22

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: -_-_**

**A/N: well, this week has been a crazy one. Famous people dying left and right. First Ed McMahon, then Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson(in one freaking day) and now Billy Mays, the guy from the Oxi-clean commercials. Yeah I know he's not that famous, but everyone knows those commercials.**

_Chapter 22_

Graduation was inching ever closer and the seniors were busily taking final examinations. Gabriella was trying hard to concentrate, but with the break up still looming freshly in her mind, she found it extremely difficult. Running her hand through her hair, Gabriella walked up to her locker and spun the combination to open it.

"Hey, Gabi," Taylor said as she walked up to her best friend.

"Hey," she said without turning away from her locker.

"Are you okay?"

Sighing, she nodded. "Yeah."

"Gabriella, what's wrong?"

She bit her lip and turned to Taylor. "Troy and I broke up."

Taylor gasped. "When?"

"A few nights ago," she said, looking down. "That's why I've been acting distant."

"But why? You two were so great together."

"Yeah, but my mother didn't approve and Troy didn't want to create an even bigger rift than he had already caused between us."

"So he broke up with you because he didn't want you to fight with your mother?" Gabriella nodded. "How sweet!"

Gabriella smiled softly. "Yeah, he is, isn't he?"

"Do you think you two will ever be together again?"

She shrugged. "Hopefully."

"Speaking of your ex, here he comes."

Gabriella turned and spotted Troy walking in her direction with Chad by his side. His azure eyes connected with hers and he sent a small smile her way. She smiled back, though it pained her heart to do so. She watched as he went back into his conversation with Chad and passed her by.

"I miss him. It's only been a few days and I miss him."

"Of course you do. He broke up with you remember?"

"Yeah, but not because he wanted to, but because he needed to for the sake of my relationship with my mother."

"What does your mother think of him now?"

"She doesn't know the full reason why he broke up with me and I don't plan on telling her."

"Why not?"

Gabriella closed her locker. "Because if she would have just accepted him, Troy and I would still be together."

Taylor smiled sadly at her best friend before wrapping her in a tender hug. "Everything will be okay in the end; you'll see."

"I hope you're right."

-

-

"Everyone on the bleachers!" Coach Bolton yelled after blowing his whistle. The class all took a seat on the metal bleachers and turned their attention to him. "As you all know, this is our last gym class. I have to say, it's been a pleasure teaching all of you, even if a few of me got on my nerves." He turned his gaze to his son's best friend, smiling playfully at the teenager.

"Aw. Come on, Coach, you know you like me," Chad said.

Coach Bolton chuckled and shook his head. "Not by choice."

His eyes drifted over to his son who sat silently, his eyes trained on something else. Following his line of sight, he found that Troy was busy staring at the petite brunette who had her head down, her long tresses covering her face. He quirked an eyebrow, curious as to why they weren't sitting together. Then he suddenly realized Gabriella's presence was absent around the Bolton household for the past few days. He wondered what had happened between the two. Clearing his head of the two teenagers, he turned back to his class, smiling.

"Well, the bell's gonna ring soon, so why don't you all make your way to the locker room and get ready for your next class. Bolton, stay behind, I need to speak to you for a second." Troy nodded and kept his seat as everyone else left the gym, his eyes once more following the brunette until he could no longer see her. Jack sighed and went to sit next to his son. "What's going on between you and Gabriella?"

"You noticed, huh?"

"Well, yeah. I mean, she hasn't been at the house since she was over for dinner. What happened?"

Troy sighed. "We broke up."

"What? Why? You two seemed so into each other. How did that change?"

Chuckling slightly, Troy shook his head. "It hasn't. We still are into each other."

"So why did she break up with you?"

"Actually…I broke up with her."

"Why would you do that?"

"Because I was building a wall between her and her mother. Her mother doesn't like me because of what I've done to Gabriella over the past four years and, no matter how hard Gabriella tries to convince her, she doesn't believe that I have feelings for her. Not to mention she doesn't think I'm good enough for her. I can't be that person that is the reason why Gabriella stops talking to the only family she has."

Jack placed a hand on his son's shoulder. "You really love her, don't you?"

Troy nodded and smiled, looking at his father. "More than anything."

Chuckling, he shook his head. "I never knew my son was such a hopeless romantic."

"Hey, I learned from the best."

He smiled. "You should get changed and get ready for class."

"Yeah." He stood up and made his way down the bleachers. "See you at home?" he asked, turning around.

"Of course."

Troy smiled and made his way towards the locker room.

-

-

Benita Montez watched her daughter from the doorway as she looked out the window, a dazed look on her face. She had been this way since Troy had ended things and, truthfully, she didn't like seeing her so emotionally drained. Gabriella had been truly happy with Troy and Benita was too stubborn to see it. She was so bent on seeing Troy as this boy who had sent her daughter home crying almost every week, that she didn't see how happy Gabriella was with him. Now she saw how miserable she was and it killed her. Wanting to fix what she had broken, Benita walked into the kitchen and went to find the phone book. Finding what she needed, she closed it and left the house, driving to her destination. She knocked on the cedar wood door and waited for an answer.

The door opened and a woman with brown hair and blue eyes stepped into the frame. "May I help you?"

"Um, yes, I'm looking for Troy Bolton."

Lucille looked at the woman in shock. "May I ask who you are?"

"I'm Gabriella's mother."

"Oh," she said with a smile on her face. "I'm Lucille, Troy's mother. It's nice to finally meet you." She held out her hand and Benita shook it.

"It's nice to meet you, too. Is Troy home? I need to speak to him."

"Yeah, he's out back. Come, I'll show you to the yard."

Benita followed Lucille through the house, admiring the interior. When they reached the back door, Lucille opened it and allowed Benita to walk out. "Thank you."

"Troy, you've got company." The boy in question stopped shooting free throws and turned towards the two women standing on the back porch, surprised to Gabriella's mother standing there. He waited until his mother walked back into the house before approaching the woman.

"Uh, hi, Ms. Montez."

Benita walked towards, stopping just before her feet could touch the blacktop. "I need to know why you broke up with my daughter."

"Didn't she tell you?"

"No," she said, shaking her head. "Gabriella hasn't spoken to me since the night of the dinner."

Troy sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I broke up with her because of you."

"Why? Because I intimidate you? Because I scare you? Because you think it'll be too hard for you to date her while I have a strong dislike towards you?"

He shook his head. "No."

"Then why?"

"Because I don't want her to end up hating you." Benita stared at the young man in shock. She wasn't expecting that answer. "I don't want her to stop talking to you. You're the only family she has and, like the saying goes, blood is thicker than water."

She stared at the boy her daughter loved so much, seeing what Gabriella had seen for the past month. Troy Bolton wasn't what she had previously believed he was. He was something completely different.

"How much do you love my daughter?"

"More than my own life," he answered with no hesitation.

Her eyes softened. She couldn't believe she didn't see this before. She couldn't believe she had been this stubborn and this blind to the real emotions this boy had for her daughter and vice versa. She let her past vision of him paint over the present one and, in turn, caused Gabriella to hate her.

"I'm sorry." Troy looked at the woman. "I'm sorry for standing in between you and Gabriella. I should have trusted her, I should have believed in her. I was so determined to keep that image of you that I had stuck in the back of my mind that I couldn't see that you really mean a lot to her and she to you."

"Ms. Montez, I understand why you chose not to trust me, I truly do. But if this is what it takes to keep her from hating you, then it has to be done."

She smiled softly. "I think there's a way that can solve both problems."

"What way is that?"

"By giving you my approval and my blessing."

He was stunned. "Really?"

"Yes. You've proven that you are not thinking about yourself, but about her and that's all that truly matters."

He smiled. "Thank you, Ms. Montez."

"Please, call me Benita." He nodded. "Now. We need to talk about this basketball business."

"What about it?"

"Well, for one, you need a plan-B. You never know what might happen."

He chuckled. "Alright, but only because I want you to think I'm worthy of your daughter."

She smiled softly. "You've already proven that."

**A/N: and now she approves. what's left? Getting back together with Gabriella. Kessy0105, we seriously did not plan a Troyella break up day. It was pure coincidence. lol. Oh and guys, don't get used to the fast updates. This chapter came to me as I was reading all your great reviews so keep up the great work.**


	23. Chapter 23

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: not mine. can't afford an attorney so please don't sue_**

**A/N: if you haven't read and reviewed my first Zekepay story, please do. I need to know what you guys think of it. For the four who have, thank you.**

_Chapter 23_

Benita walked into the house, a soft smile adorning her face. She went upstairs and straight to Gabriella's bedroom. Knocking on the door, she waited for her to answer.

"Gabriella," she said as she knocked once more. "Gabriella, I have some good news."

"Go. Away."

"Gabi, please."

The door flew open and Gabriella glared at her mother. "Leave. Me. Alone!" she yelled before slamming the door back.

She gasped as the house shook from the force. Regaining her composure, she reached for the knob and turned it, only to find it locked.

"Gabriella! Gabriella, open the door!" She yelled as she knocked furiously on the door.

Gabriella walked out onto her balcony and left the door ajar. She didn't want to deal with her mother at all. Moving towards the corner, she sat down on the floor and leaned her head against the wood pillars that held the banister up. Tears slowly made their way down her cheek as she stared out at the darkening sky.

-

-

Friday. Last day of the week; last day for the seniors. Everyone around was celebrating this joyous day. No more school, no more teachers, and no more homework.

Troy watched as his best friends made a fool of themselves, dancing around the fountain that stood at the front entrance of the school building. He shook his head, smiling brightly. He was celebrating within his own mind, but he was rejoicing for different reasons. Yesterday Gabriella's mother had finally accepted him and gave him her blessing to date her daughter. He couldn't wait to tell her; to restart their relationship. His blue eyes scanned over the crowd, hoping she was watching this little spectacle his friends had put on, but she was nowhere to be found. Sighing, his smile slipped off his face and he went back to watching the show.

The party ended once Principal Matsui came out, ordering that it be stopped and for everyone to head inside. Troy reluctantly went inside, but not without taking one more glance around, hoping to see her brown eyes staring back at him.

"Dude, what's wrong?" Chad asked as they walked up to his locker.

"Nothing."

"Come on, Troy, you've been acting down for the past week. What's going on?"

"It's nothing, really."

Chad sighed. "If you say so."

"Look, I'll see you in homeroom, alright?"

"Yeah."

Troy walked straight for Gabriella's locker, hoping that she was there. Upon arrival, he was disheartened to see that she wasn't. He needed to see her, to tell her that they could be together, but how was that possible when she was nowhere to be found. Mood falling, Troy made his way to his locker.

-

-

Lunchtime and still no sign of the beautiful brunette. Troy's mood dropped drastically as the day went by without his blue eyes settling on Gabriella's features. Sitting at the round table, Troy played unconsciously with his food, in no mood to eat.

"Yo, Taylor!" Chad yelled and Troy raised his head, expecting to see the brunette walking beside her best friend, but there was no one.

Taylor walked over to the two guys and sat down beside Chad. "Hey, guys," she said before kissing him.

"I've missed you," Chad said.

"You've seen me all day."

"Yeah, but I haven't spoken to you at all." Her brown eyes looked over at her boyfriend's best friend and noticed the sullen look on his face.

"Troy," she said and he looked at her. "Are you okay?" He nodded. "You sure?" He nodded again and she bit her lip, knowing something was wrong.

"Um…where's Gabriella?" he asked, truly curious as to the whereabouts of his ex.

"She didn't come to school today."

"She didn't?"

She shook her head. "No. She said she wasn't feeling well. Why do you ask?"

He shook his head and stood up. "I'll see you two later." He left the cafeteria, dropping his food into the nearest trash can, and heading straight for his locker.

Spinning his combination, he opened the door and took out his phone. He now knew the reason why he had yet to see Gabriella's beautiful brown eyes and there was only one way to tell her the good news. But as he brought up a new text message, he was hit by an idea and smiled. His fingers typed away at the keys before pressing send. Closing his locker, he made his way towards the front door, knowing no one would care if he left. He was a senior; his foot was half-way out the door anyway.

-

-

_1 new text message_.

Gabriella bit her lip, reluctant to read it. Sighing, she pressed 'read' and let her eyes scan over the words.

_Gabriella,_

_Be ready in ten._

_Troy_

Her brows furrowed. What had he meant by that? And why? They had broken up, so why did he want to see her? Figuring it wouldn't hurt, she took a quick five minute shower and quickly dressed in a lavender v-neck shirt and blue jeans. When she heard a loud honk from outside, she slipped on her black flats and ran outside to see Troy's car sitting at the curb.

He opened the passenger door and motioned for her over. "Get in." She hesitantly climbed into the vehicle and he sped off.

The next few minutes were silent. Gabriella didn't know what to say. She was surprised that he was here with her, but happy at the same time. When he stopped sometime later, she looked around and found that he had taken her to the same place he had taken her on their first date. Without a word, he got out and she took that as a cue for her to follow.

"Troy," she said, speaking to him for the first time since he had broken up with her. "Why are we here?"

He smirked and looked at her. "Do you remember when I first took you here?"

She nodded. "Yeah, but what…?"

"Come on." He took her hand and led her to the shuttle train. They got off at the Botanical Gardens like they did last time and he walked up to the ticket counter. "Two please." The guy behind the glass nodded as Troy paid for them, getting the tickets in return.

He once again took Gabriella's hand and led her into the depths of the garden.

Gabriella was curious as to why they were there, but for some reason she couldn't voice it. She believed it was because she was too busy enjoying the feeling of his hand in hers. Though it had only been a week, she missed the feeling of his touch. She missed him in general. It felt like they had never separated; like he had never ended things between them. Just thinking about it made her heart drop and reality set in. Looking down at their entwined hands, she remembered that they weren't together. He had broken up with her because he didn't want to be a strain on the relationship between her and her mother.

Sighing, she removed her hand from his, letting the cold set in. Feeling her pull back, he looked over at her, confusion flashing in his blue eyes. She looked away from him and wrapped her arms around herself. He, then, realized why she had and ran a hand through his hair. Noticing they were at their destination, he grabbed her arm and stopped her, smiling softly.

"Do you remember this spot?" She looked around, the variety of Liles around them bringing her memory back. She gave him a small smile and nodded. He took her hand again and laced their fingers. "Do you remember what I asked you?

"Yeah, you asked me if I would be your girlfriend."

He nodded. "Well, now I'm asking you again."

"What? But…but, Troy, we can't. My mom…"

He put his finger on her lips. "Your mom gave me her blessing."

"She…she did? When?"

"Yesterday," he said with a shrug. "She made a surprise visit to my house and asked me why I broke up with you. I told her the truth, that I broke up with you to preserve her relationship with you and she told me that I've proven to her that I really do care about you. I would have told you earlier, but you decided not to come to school."

"I'm sorry," she said looking down. "I just…I wasn't up to going to school."

"No need to apologize." He ran a finger along her cheek. "So," he said, kissing her fingertips, "will you be my girlfriend…again?"

She smiled. "I'd love to."

He grinned and cupped her cheek. "Good, cause I'm tired of being without you."

She giggled before her eyes fluttered close as he leaned in and captured her lips. Chills ran down her spine as his mouth moved against hers. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pulled him closer and smiled inwardly as his hands went to her waist.

She pulled back and looked into his eyes. "I love you," she said softly.

"I love you, too." She grinned and kissed him.

-

-

"I need…to go," she said between gasps of air.

"No, you don't." Troy couldn't stop kissing the silky smooth skin of her neck.

"Troy," she moaned, biting her lip.

He groaned his response and stopped his attack on her flesh. "Fine, but the next time I get you alone, you're not leaving until I say so."

She giggled and pecked his lips. "It's a deal. Are you still picking me up tomorrow?"

"Of course. I wouldn't want my girl to miss graduation practice."

She smiled and kissed him once more. "Night."

"Night. Sweet dreams."

She climbed out of his car and headed towards her door. She turned and waved goodbye before heading in. The first thing she did when she entered her house was seek out her mother. Finding her washing dishes, she went up behind her and hugged her. When she pulled away seconds later, Benita turned around, surprised.

"What was that for?"

"For finally accepting Troy."

"I see he told you."

Gabriella nodded. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I tried, but if I remember, you locked yourself in your room and refused to speak to me."

"I'm sorry."

Benita shook her head and pulled her daughter into her arms. "No, I'm sorry. I should have trusted your judgment."

"I'll forgive you, if you forgive me," she said, pulling back slightly.

Smiling, she nodded. "Deal."

**A/N: And all is right with the world. I think I might end this at twenty-five, so that means two more chapters left.**


	24. Chapter 24

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**A/N: sorry for the wait. I've been having bad cases of writer's block. Usually when that happens, I start a new story, but it's so bad that I can't even do that. **

**Don't know how many of you have heard what Dane Cook said to Vanessa at the Teen Choice Awards. I used to like Dane, but after that jackass move, I don't anymore. That was rude of him to make that joke--if you could call it that--and stupid. You don't do that to someone's face no matter how much you think they deserved it. It's fucked up and it's wrong. It's bad enough that Vanessa has had this happen to her twice and has lost most of her fanbase, but for him to just come out and make that comment made it even worse. I feel so bad for her. If you don't know what he said, but want to, look it up on youtube. But speaking of naked pictures, anyone heard about Ashley Greene's(Alice from Twilight)? Supposedly they were illegally released and she's suing the person who put them up. I wish Vanessa could do that, but I have a feeling she has no idea who put hers up. **

**On to more important matters. This story is rated M for some unknown reason that I can't seem to remember. I guess I was going to put a sex scene in this and never got the chance to. So, show of hands, who wants me to put a sex scene in this? If not, I'll lower the rating.**

_Chapter 24_

"Troy," she breathed as her fingers gripped his chestnut hair. "Troy, we need to…get back out there."

"What for?" he asked, his teeth nipping at her collarbone. "It's not like we haven't been practicing this for three days straight."

"But…what if…someone notices…we're gone?"

He brought his head to hers. "They won't." He kissed her lips. "Trust me."

Hitching up her skirt, he ran his hands over the curve of her butt and squeezed it tightly. She moaned breathily and arched her back, pushing her body against his. With one swift movement, he pushed her underwear down and let it pool at her feet. She quickly picked up her legs, letting the garment fall to the floor, and wrapped them around his waist. Troy wasted no time removing his pants and boxers, wanting to feel himself sliding in and out of her.

"Wait." She pulled back and looked into his eyes. "I can't."

"Why not?"

"I'm…I'm still a virgin, Troy, and I don't want my first time to be in a closet."

He sighed, but nodded, kissing her lips softly. "I understand."

"I'm sorry."

He gave her a sincere smile. "It's perfectly fine, Gabriella." He touched her cheek. "I do want you to be comfortable since losing your virginity isn't."

She quirked an eyebrow. "And you'd know that how?"

He chuckled. "There were others before you, some virgins, and they would all wince in pain when it happened and then be sore the next day. But since you are the only one who has my heart, I want you to be comfortable when it happens and have time to relax the day after."

She smiled softly, reaching up to brush his hair away from his eyes. "Thank you."

He grinned before placing his lips on hers once more. "I guess there's nothing else better to do than to go back out there." She nodded and he placed her legs back on the floor. He watched as she put her panties back on before grabbing her hand. "Let's go."

Quietly, they snuck back into the auditorium and retook their seats. Their absence, however, did not go unnoticed by their best friends. Gabriella was immediately grilled by Taylor, who was anxious to know what had happened.

"Where were you?" she whispered.

"Bathroom."

"Uh-huh, sure. And that's why you and Troy came back at the same time."

"We met up in the hallway."

"Gabriella, I'm your best friend. You can't lie to me."

She sighed. "Fine. We were kind of getting hot and heavy in the janitor's closet."

"How hot and heavy?"

"Almost to the point where we were about to have sex."

"What? You didn't, did you?"

"Of course not. I couldn't possibly lose my virginity in there."

"He understood though, right?"

"Yeah. He wants me to be comfortable for my first time."

"Aww. How sweet."

"I know."

The conversation ended and the two girls went back to listening to Ms. Darbus drone on about what was going to happen and what they were supposed to do. Gabriella couldn't help looking a few rows ahead of her where her boyfriend sat. She watched as he turned slightly, his blue eyes staring straight into hers. He grinned and turned back around. Shaking her head, she put her attention on listening to Ms. Darbus.

-

-

"So…"

"So, what?" Troy asked as he and Chad walked out of the building.

"Where were you for most of practice?"

"Making out with Gabriella in the janitor's closet."

"So what happened?"

"What do you mean 'what happened?'"

"I mean, did you fuck her or what?"

Troy's azure eyes narrowed at his best friend. "What I do with my girlfriend is none of you business."

"Sorry. I shouldn't have asked. What I meant to say is, why were you gone for so long if all you two did was make out?"

His eyes returned to normal and he shrugged. "Got caught up. We were close to going all the way, but then she realized that we were in a closet and that was the last place she wanted to be deflowered."

"So she wants the full effect? She wants the bed, the candles, all that?"

"I don't know about candles, but a bed, yes. She wants to be comfortable and I want her to be comfortable."

Chad nodded. "I guess that makes sense."

"What's up with you and Taylor?" Troy asked, changing the subject.

"Not sure at the moment."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, we're going to be going to different colleges. She's going to Yale with Gabriella in the fall and I'm gonna be here with you."

Troy scratched his neck nervously. "Yeah, about that."

"What?"

"Um…I wanted to tell you this earlier, but I didn't know how."

"Tell me what?"

"I'm not going to U of A."

"You're not!" He shook his head. "But…that was our plan. We were supposed to go to college together. We were supposed to be Red Hawks together."

"I know, I know, but…I…I don't want to go anymore."

Chad sighed and hung his head. "So where are you going?"

"Duke."

"Duke!"

"They offered me a full scholarship, Chad, I had to take it. Not to mention I would be a lot closer to Gabriella than I would be here. Please don't be mad."

Chad gave his best friend a small smile. "I'm not. Disappointed, but not mad. I know how much she means to you, so I understand that you wanna be closer to her. I just wish you would have told me that sooner so I could have done the same."

Troy smiled. "Thanks for understanding."

"Always." From the corner of his eye, Chad could see Gabriella coming towards them. "Here comes your girl."

Troy turned and his eyes lit up at the sight of his girlfriend walking up to him. "Hey, Gabriella."

"Hey, Troy. Hey, Chad."

"Hey. Have a nice time in the closet?" he asked with a grin.

"Did Troy tell you we did something? Cause I swear to you we didn't. All we did was make out, nothing else…"

"Calm down, Gabriella. He told me nothing happened."

"Oh. Good. Taylor's looking for you."

His grin dropped. "Probably to break up with me."

"She wouldn't do that," Troy said.

"She would. We're going to college and we'll be on two different sides of the country."

"You can always transfer."

"That's true."

"Just go find her. I'm sure she's not going to break up with you," Gabriella said and he nodded.

"I hope you're right."

He walked away and Troy took that opportunity to pull Gabriella close to him. She giggled softly as he buried his face in her neck, breathing in the strawberry smell of her shampoo.

"You all right?" she asked after minutes of silence passed between them.

"Yeah, I'm fine." He moved from her neck up to her mouth, kissing her lips. "You need a ride home?"

"Of course."

He took her hand and they walked to his car. Gabriella knew something was bothering him just by the way he was being quiet. She wished he would talk to her instead of shutting her out. When he pulled up into her driveway, she turned to him, determined to find out what was wrong.

"What's bothering you?"

"Nothing."

She tilted her head. "Come on, Troy, I know there's something wrong."

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "If I hadn't have gotten into Duke, would you have broken up with me?"

"That's what's bothering you?" He nodded. She smiled softly and took his hand. "Of course not."

"Really?" He looked at her.

"Yes, really. Why would I want to lose you when I just got you?"

He smiled and leant across the divider, covering her mouth with his. "I love you," he murmured against her lips.

She pulled back, a loving smile on her face. "I love you, too." She turned and opened the door on her side. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Can't wait."

She giggled. "Tomorrow's graduation. You can't wait for graduation?"

"That I can wait for. Seeing you tomorrow, I can't."

Unable to control the urge, she leant back over and kissed him. "That was corny, but I loved it."

He chuckled and grabbed her face, bringing her in for one more kiss. "Bye."

"Bye."

She climbed out of his car and walked up to her front door. Troy watched as she went inside her house, closing the door with one final look at him. As much as he was excited for graduation, he wished he could start high school all over again. He wanted to do it all over so he and Gabriella could have more time together. If he could turn back time, he would figure out his feelings for her sooner rather than waiting until it was too late. But since time travel isn't possible, he had to make the best of whatever time they had left.


	25. Chapter 25

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything**_

**A/N: so...there's going to be two more chapters. I think I said I would stop with 25, but I changed my mind. I love you guys too much. Thanks for all those who read and commented my new one-shot.**

_Chapter 25_

Graduation day. The day she had been looking forward to since she entered high school.

With a muffled groan, Gabriella pushed herself up and rolled out of bed. Even though the commencement wasn't until later on that night, she wanted to make sure she had everything ready. Her cap was set, with pins and all to keep it on her head, her gown was steam pressed to get out all wrinkles, and the dress she was set to wear was hanging in a salon bag, ready to be worn. Everything was perfect. Well…mostly everything.

Walking over to her dresser, she looked through her underwear draw for the perfect set. Unfortunately, she owned none. Her previous lack of boyfriends had never given her reason to buy a raunchy set of undergarments. Everything she owned was conservative and not the least bit sexy. Sighing, she decided that she needed to pay a visit to Victoria's Secret and grabbed the first bra and panties she could get her hands on.

Tonight…was going to be _the night_. She decided it last night as she was reading over her Valedictorian speech. Somehow her mind had slipped to Troy for a brief twenty minutes and she came up with the decision to lose her virginity the next night—graduation night. She knew he wanted this and so did she. She wanted to show him how much she loved him by giving him the only thing she couldn't take back.

Stepping out of the shower, she heard the sounds of her phone ringing from in her room and ran to retrieve it, stopping it from going to voicemail.

"Hello?"

"_Hey, babe."_

She smiled. "Hey, Troy. What's up?" she asked as she went back in the bathroom to get her underwear.

"_Nothing much just missing you."_

She laughed. "You saw me yesterday."

"_Yeah, but that was hours ago. So what are you doing?"_

"Getting dressed."

"_Oh? So then you're naked right now?"_

"Perv."

"_I'll take that as a 'yes.' What are you getting dressed for anyway? Graduation isn't for another seven hours."_

"I'm actually going to the mall."

"_For?"_

"That's for me to know and for you to find out."

"_Does that mean it's a present for me?"_

"Maybe. But do you think you could do me a favor?"

"_Depends on what it is. If you need me to rub lotion on that gorgeous body of yours, you don't even have to ask."_

She rolled her eyes. "Down boy," she said jokingly. "I actually wanted to know if you could drive me to the mall."

"_Yeah, sure. No problem. I'll be there in ten."_

"Thanks, babe. See you when you get here."

"_Alright."_

She ended the call and finished getting dressed.

-

-

"So what is it _exactly_ that you're getting?" Troy asked as they pulled into the parking lot of the mall.

"That," she turned to him and smiled, "is none of your business."

"Can't you just tell me?"

"Nope, because it would ruin the surprise."

"So you are getting me a graduation present?"

She sighed. "If you must know, yes, yes I am. But you won't get it until _after_ graduation." She opened the door and got out.

"Aww, come on, babe," he said, following her.

"No. I'm not telling."

He grabbed her waist and pulled her back against him. "Can't you just give me a hint?"

"No, now stop asking."

He sighed. "Fine."

He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and walked beside her as they made their way into the mall. Once they were in front of the giant fountain that sat in the entrance way, she turned to him.

"And this is where we part."

"Do we have to?"

"Yes. I don't want you knowing what your present is before I give it to you."

He grabbed her waist and pulled her close. "It better be a good present."

"It is. Trust me."

He grinned and kissed her lips. "I'll be in the arcade if you need me."

"Kay."

He walked off and she made sure he went in the direction of the arcade before venturing up to the fifth floor where Victoria's Secret was located. Her heart pumped wildly within her chest as she looked at the different variety of undergarments. She wasn't sure which one to get.

"Do you need any help?" asked one of the employees.

"Um…yes, actually. This is my first time shopping for…well…sexy lingerie."

"Let me guess, you're finally going to be intimate with your boyfriend?"

"Yeah," she answered with a nod of her head.

"Well, is there anything specific you're looking for?"

"Sexy, but sophisticated. Something that's not over the top."

The woman chuckled. "Don't worry, we don't carry anything that's considered 'slutty'." Gabriella smiled. "Come on, I'll show you what we have."

After being shown different types of lingerie, Gabriella finally chose the perfect one. It was a black lace bra that was partially see through and a matching black lace thong. A blush set itself on her face when she first took a glance at the tiny piece of underwear. She couldn't imagine herself in that. It just wasn't possible. But then she thought about the look on Troy's face when he saw her in it and a sudden rush came over her.

"So how are you paying?" the woman asked.

"Cash."

"Okay, that'll come to…forty twenty-three." Gabriella handed her two twenties and a ten. "Okay, here's your change and thank you for shopping at Victoria's Secret."

"Thanks."

"Oh, and good luck with your boyfriend."

Gabriella smiled and left the store. Knowing the risks, she stuck the garments in her purse and ditched the bag in the nearest garbage can. She didn't want Troy to find out what she was planning so getting rid of all evidence was necessary. She made her way to the arcade and found Troy playing _House of the Dead 2_. Grinning, she walked up behind him and looked over his shoulder, admiring his score.

"Does this mean that if there's ever a zombie infestation, you'll be able to keep me alive?" she asked.

He quickly turned his head, her voice catching him off guard. He smiled and shrugged, turning back to the game. "Maybe."

"What do you mean maybe?"

"I mean, who's to say I actually want to save you."

She scoffed in disbelief. "Well, fine, then. Don't save me, see if I care. Just don't expect me to kiss you ever again." She walked away and he completely abandoned his game, not caring that he was getting killed, to chase after her.

"Gabriella." He ran after her, grabbing her arm to stop her. "Gabriella, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it." He grabbed her waist. "Of course I'll save you. Why wouldn't I want to save my beautiful and sweet girlfriend? Come on. I would be stupid not to." She smiled. "So, are you finished with your little shopping trip?"

"Yes, I am."

"Good. Now we can go get something to eat. I'm starving." She giggled and they walked out of the arcade, heading towards the food court.

Gabriella couldn't wait for tonight. She would show Troy that she just wasn't his beautiful and sweet girlfriend, that she could be more than that. Today, she would be sweet Gabriella, but tonight…she would be a whole _different_ girl.

-

-

Was she nervous? No. Was she excited? Yes.

Graduation had been the only thing on her mind for the past month, though it had to take the backburner when she was going through the emotional trauma of Troy breaking up with her to save her relationship with her mother. But that was over now. He and her were back together and Gabriella's mother had learned to accept and like the blue-eyed boy. Now she could focus on graduation and the future.

Staring into her full length mirror, Gabriella smoothed out the invisible wrinkles of her dress. Today was the day; the day that she was no longer considered a high school student. Once she had that diploma in her hand, she would be a college freshman. As much as she relished the idea of being a high school graduate, she hated that she would once more be at the bottom of the food chain. She had gotten so used to being upperclassmen, that she forgot what it felt like to be fresh meat.

Sighing, she pulled away from her mirror and walked over to her dresser, where her purse lay open. As she collected important things she would need, such as her cell phone and her house keys, said phone rung and she quickly flipped it open to answer it.

"Hello?"

"_Hey, babe."_

She smiled. "Hey, Troy."

"_So…I'm here at school and I see no sign of my beautiful girlfriend. Why is that?"_

"Sorry. I'm running a bit late. My mom went to get her hair done and hasn't come back yet."

"_Do you want me to come pick you up?"_

"No, I wouldn't want you to be late, too."

"_Gabriella, it's just the ceremony. It's not like we aren't going to get our diploma's if we aren't there."_

"I know, but…"

"_But nothing. I'm coming to get you."_

"Troy, really, you don't have to."

"_I know, but I want to."_

She sighed and rolled her eyes. "Fine."

"_Alright. I'll be there in a few."_

"I'll be waiting."

Ending the call, she dialed her mother's cell number and waited for her to pick up. Unfortunately, no answer came and she was forced to leave a message.

"Hey, Mom, it's me. I'm just calling to tell you that Troy's coming to pick me up so I'll meet you at the school. Bye."

Closing her phone, she walked over to her purse and placed it back inside. Walking to her closet, she pulled out her red graduation gown. As she fingered the fabric of it, an idea struck in her mind and she grinned, snatching it from off the hanger before running to the bathroom.

-

-

Whistling a little tune, Troy knocked on Gabriella's front door, waiting for her to answer. When the door opened, he smiled and took in the sight of her dressed in the red graduation gown with black stilettos adorning her petite feet.

"Don't you look pretty." She grinned. "So you ready to go?"

"Actually," she started, grabbing his hand, "I was think about what you said, about how we're still going to get our diplomas even if we weren't there."

"Uh-huh. And…?" her asked, placing his hand on her hips.

"And, I've come to the decision that we should just skip graduation altogether." She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Besides, I want to give you your gift."

"My gift?" She nodded. "Alright, show me what it is."

She grinned and broke away from him, starting up the stairs. "Follow me."

He followed, closing the door behind him. His curiosity peaked when he saw the backwards glance she sent to him as she walked into her room. When he entered her room, he saw that she was sitting on her bed, legs crossed and eyes on him.

"Close the door please."

He obliged and closed the door. "So…where's my gift?"

She stood up and reached for the zipper of the gown. "Right." She pulled it down, letting the gown fall to her feet. "Here."

His mouth went slack as his azure irises washed over her barely covered body. "G-Gabriella…"

She suddenly felt self-conscious as he continued to stare. Her previous courageousness slowly slipped away and she wrapped her arms around her.

"You, uh, you don't…" She looked away, tears pushing their way to the surface.

Sudden realization jolted him from his gaze and he walked up to her. "Gabriella, baby, it's not that."

"Then what is it?" she asked, looking into his eyes. "You finally see me like this and you don't think I'm pretty enough…_sexy_ enough?"

He cupped her cheek. "Babe, I think you're the most beautiful girl on this planet. Not even Megan Fox could sway me the way you do." He leaned his forehead against hers. "But you, Ms. Valedictorian, have a speech to make tonight. So missing graduation isn't an option."

"You won't let me have any fun, will you?"

He chuckled and kissed her nose. "I will, just not now." He ran his hand through her hair. "Now go get dressed so we can leave."

She nodded and walked past him towards the bathroom. Stepping back into her room moments later, she watched as Troy's eyes scanned over her attire approvingly. He stood up and crossed over to her.

"Ready?"

"Yeah. I just need to get my purse." She walked over to her dresser and snatched her purse before following Troy downstairs. "I can't believe we're graduating," she said as they walked out her front door.

"Same. I wish I could go back to the beginning, though."

She turned to him. "Why?"

He looked at her and grabbed her hand, smiling softly. "Because I would have done things differently."

She returned the smile and moved closer to him. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and kissed her temple, lovingly.

"I love you," he whispered against her hair.

"I love you, too."


	26. Chapter 26

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: Don't Own_**

**A/N: so there is a sex scene in this chapter, however, I will not be doing what I usually do because...well because I think I make it pretty clear where it starts. Many of you were indifferent to it anyways which means that you would read it anyway ;) I will tell you that it's mostly towards the end and, really, it's not as big of a deal as it could be. I have to say I'm disappointed with the number of reviews I got for the last chapter, but I do thank the eight people who did review. One more chapter left.**

_Chapter 26_

"So what took you so long?" Taylor asked as she and Gabriella stood in the kitchen of the home of one of their fellow graduate's.

Shrugging, Gabriella took a sip of punch from the cup in her hand. "Truthfully, I wanted to skip graduation, but then Troy reminded me that I had a speech to make."

Taylor nodded and took a drink out of her own cup.

Troy and Gabriella had just made it to East High as the procession started. They easily slid into their spots on line and took their assigned seats. Unfortunately, Gabriella had completely forgotten what she had written down for her Valedictorian speech and was forced to make things up. Her nerves had reached an all time high when she took the stage to make a speech that she had to pull from her own thoughts, but one look into Troy's blue eyes, that stared adoringly at her from the crowd below, and all her nerves dissipated.

"So what did you say to Chad yesterday?"

"I told him that…" she took a deep breath, "I know that he's going to have _urges_ and I know that with me not being there, he's going to want to fulfill them. So…I told him that I won't hold it against him if he…feels the need to."

"Are you serious? You basically gave him the 'OK' to cheat on you," she said, disbelieving her best friend.

"I know, I know. It's wrong to do because I'll just get my heart broken, but…" she smiled softly, "he told me that even if he did have the urge to, he would never cheat on me because _he loves me_."

"Aww," she gushed. "And what did you say back?"

"I told him I loved him, too."

Gabriella smiled. "My baby's in love." She hugged her best friend.

"I'm not the only one. You and Troy have already confessed your undying love for each other."

"Yeah, but that was a while back."

"That was two weeks ago." Gabriella smiled shyly and shrugged. "So…are you two going to _you know_ before you leave for college?"

"I actually had that in mind for today. It's why I wanted to skip graduation."

"Really now?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I even brought new lingerie and everything."

"Ooo. Trying to be sexy for your boyfriend?"

"Yeah."

"So do you think you're gonna get another try at it?"

She shrugged. "Maybe."

"I think I'm gonna wait and see how college goes before taking that next step with Chad. Even though we said we love each other, I think college will help confirm if it's true."

Gabriella paled. "Do you think I should do the same thing?"

Taylor shook her head. "I think that the week you had to go without him was proof enough that you two really do love each other."

She smiled and took another sip of the drink in her cup. As she pulled it away from her lips, a hand came out of nowhere and snatched it from her.

"Hey!"

"Thanks, Babe, I needed something to drink," Troy said, drinking out of her cup.

She snatched it back. "Get your own."

"Aww, come on. I'm thirsty." He pouted and she rolled her eyes.

"Fine." She handed it back to him and he grinned, kissing her cheek.

"Thank you."

"Whatever."

Gabriella looked over at Taylor, who was now speaking quietly with her own boyfriend. A chill ran up her spine when she felt Troy's hand on her back.

"Maybe we should leave them alone," he whispered into her ear.

She nodded and the two of them left the kitchen. As they walked back into the living room where the majority of the graduation house party was taking place, Troy took her hand and dragged her threw the crowd. He took a seat on the couch and pulled her down with him, placing her on his lap. Wrapping his arms around her waist, she leaned into him and sighed.

"You alright?" he asked.

She looked at him and smiled. "Yeah. Just thinking."

He buried his nose into her hair. "What are you thinking about?"

She shrugged. "Different things."

"Are you still interested?" he asked.

Confusion took over her features. "Interested in what?"

"In losing your virginity to me."

She blushed. "Yeah."

He smiled and squeezed her sides. "There's nothing to be embarrassed about."

"I'm not, I'm just…" She shrugged.

He chuckled at her modesty. "You're embarrassed."

"Okay, so maybe I am. I'm just not used to talking about it out loud like this."

"It's alright, Gabriella. I would even understand if you don't wanna do it now."

She looked at him. "But I do." He looked deeply into her eyes. "I do want to."

He reached up and ran his hand along her cheek before tangling it in her hair. He pulled her face down to his and connected their lips. Biting down softly on her bottom lip, he slowly dragged his teeth across it and pulled away.

"Wanna get out of here?" he whispered.

She nodded. Standing, she waited until he was on his feet before she grabbed his hand. He laced his fingers with hers and pulled her towards the exit. No words were spoken as they climbed into his car and started down the road.

"Where are we going?" she asked, looking over at him.

He shrugged. "Wherever you wanna go."

"Just…somewhere where we can be alone."

"I would say my house, but the rents are home."

She giggled softly. "My house isn't any better."

He took her hand in his and squeezed it. "I think I have an ideal place."

-

-

Pulling into the parking lot of a luxury hotel, Gabriella looked at him with confusion in her eyes. Without saying a word, he climbed out and she followed. Meeting in front of the car, he took her hand and pulled her towards the entrance of the hotel.

"Troy, what are we doing here?"

"Getting a room."

"But we can't afford this," she whispered.

"I know."

"Then what…?"

"Yo, Troy." Gabriella lifted her head towards the front desk where a tall boy with blonde hair stood, smiling at her boyfriend.

"Hey, Luke." The two males shook hands.

"What are you doing here? Isn't this graduation night?"

"Yeah. I'm actually here to see if you could do me a favor."

"Of course."

"I need a room."

The blonde's eyes moved to the girl beside his friend and he smirked knowingly. "Ah! I see." He typed something into the computer in front of him before handing Troy a key card. "1021. The people using this room haven't gotten in yet, so be quick about it."

"This is not something that we want to be quick about," he said, pulling her closer.

"First time?" Gabriella nodded. "Then I'll try and stall for as long as I can."

"Thanks, bro." Troy smiled and led Gabriella in the direction of the elevators.

Gabriella was nervous. She shouldn't have been since earlier her nerves were the last thing on her mind, but now that she had time to come down from the high that had taken over her since she exited Victoria's Secret, her nerves made themselves fully known. She bit her lip and bounced on the balls of her feet as they waited for the elevator.

"Nervous?" She nodded. He lifted the back of her hand to his lips and placed a kiss to it. "You still have time to back down."

She turned to him and smiled, shaking her head. "I told you, I want this."

He smiled and pulled her to him, kissing her softly. The elevator doors opened seconds later and they stepped in. Troy pressed the tenth floor before leaning against the wall, pulling her closer. He reattached their lips, continuing their mini make out session until the elevator reached the tenth floor.

Her heart raced faster and faster as they neared the door. Swiping the key card, Troy opened the door and she followed him inside. Clicking on the light, they both scanned the room. It was a simple room with a single bed, but beautiful nonetheless.

_This is it…this is the moment I've been waiting for._

Troy walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. She smiled softly and leaned into him.

"Ready for this?"

She nodded and turned to him, placing her arms around his neck. "Yeah," she whispered.

Reaching up, he pushed her hair away from her face. His eyes looked deeply into hers as they did back at the party, trying to make sure she telling the truth. The last thing he wanted to do was to push her into something she didn't want to do. Nor did he want her to do something she wasn't ready for.

Uncertain about his hesitation, she leant up and kissed his lips. He stumbled backwards slightly, caught off guard before placing his hands on her hips. His blunt fingernails dug gently into her sides as he pulled her closer. He wasn't going to lie, but he wanted this as much as he wanted her, he just didn't want to hurt her. He pulled back and bit his lip.

"Troy, what's wrong?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Nothing, I just…Are you _sure_ you're ready for this?"

She smiled softly. "I'm sure."

"Really? Cause we don't have to if you…"

She pressed a finger to his lips. "Troy, I'm sure." Her smile slipped off her face and she backed away from him. "Unless…unless you don't want to."

"No, I do!" He grabbed her hand and pulled her towards him. "I do want to. I just don't wanna hurt you."

"You could never hurt me."

"I've done it before," he mumbled.

"The past is the past, Troy. This is now, that was then." Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pushed her body against his and looked into his eyes. "I love you, so much, and I want this."

He looked into her eyes once more before leaning in, capturing her lips with his. Placing his hands on her lower back, he pulled her closer and tilted his head to deepen the kiss. One hand trailed upwards, looking to find the zipper of her dress. Once finding that, it pulled it downward until it could go no more. He pressed his hands to her bare back, loving the feeling of her skin underneath his fingertips.

Being that her dress was strapless, it immediately crashed to the ground, nothing holding it up against her body any longer. His hands trailed down her back and coming in contact with her lacy underwear clad backside, cupping it in his palms. She giggled and he couldn't help but chuckle in response.

Running her hands from his shoulders to his chest, she unbuttoned his shirt slowly, making sure she got each one. Once all buttons were undone, she pushed the fabric off his shoulders and let it fall to the floor before pushing the fabric of his undershirt up. Her small hands moved downward and rested on his abs. He shivered slightly, her touch sending a chill through his spine.

Detaching her lips from his, she took the undershirt between her fingers and lifted it, pulling it over his head. She threw it to the floor and gently placed her hands on his chest. She was still nervous about it all. Her stomach was in knots just thinking about what was to come.

"You alright?"

She looked up into his eyes and nodded. "Yeah. I'm still kinda nervous."

Cupping her cheek with one hand and placing the other on her back, he pulled her closer and kissed her. "We'll go as far as you want. If at any point you wanna stop, just tell me. Alright?"

She nodded. He smiled softly before kissing her once more. Bending down slightly, he hooked his hands behind her knees and lifted her off her feet. He wrapped her legs around his waist and stepped out of his shoes before carrying her over to the bed. He placed her down gently and sat up, taking her left ankle in his hands. Taking off her shoe, he grinned and ran a finger over the bottom of her foot.

"Troy," she giggled. "That tickles. Stop."

He chuckled before moving to the right foot, proceeding to do the same. Once both shoes were off, he threw them both to the floor and reached into his pants pocket. He pulled out a square foil package and showed it to her.

"If you still want to do this minutes from now, we'll need this." He moved to hover over her and slid the condom underneath the pillow. His eyes scanned over her face, admiring the beauty that was his girlfriend. He smiled lovingly at her before leaning in, placing his lips on hers.

Moving his lips from her mouth to her neck, Troy kissed from her throat to her shoulder blade. Using his teeth, he pulled down the strap of her bra until it could go no more. He kissed his way back up to her collarbone, dragging his teeth gently over it. Letting out a shaky sigh, Gabriella reached up and tangled her hand in his hair.

Despite the pleasure that was building up inside of her, she still felt a bit of her nerves eating at her. But the feel of his hands creeping up her side was enough for her to push the nervousness to the back of her mind. Feeling his hand trying to move behind her, she lifted up slightly and allowed him to reach the clasp of her bra, undoing it easily.

Pulling the fabric from her body, he threw it to the side and grasped her soft flesh in his palms. She moaned slightly and bit her lip. Glancing down, she watched as he moved from her collar to her breasts, taking a nipple into his mouth. She gasped and closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling.

To Gabriella, it felt like an eternity before they were both completely as naked as they had been when they were born. Her nervousness came back at full force when she realized what was left to do.

"Gabriella." She looked into his eyes, her nervousness clear as day. "We don't have to continue if you don't want to."

She shook her head and took his face between her hands. "I want to."

"Sure?"

She nodded and he kissed her lips. Pulling from the embrace, he reached under the pillow and grabbed the condom that he had placed there. Tearing the wrapper with his teeth, he pulled the latex out and threw the foil to the side. Sliding it into place, he situated himself parallel to her sex and looked at her.

"Ready?" She nodded, biting her lip in anticipation. "If you want me to stop, just say so and I will. Alright?" She nodded once more and he placed his lips on hers, hoping to take her mind off of what he was about to do next.

Slowly and steadily, he penetrated her virgin folds. The kiss wasn't enough to take her mind off of the pain and she pulled back hissing between her teeth. He stopped and his eyes scanned her face to make sure she was okay. Once the pain subsided, she nodded, telling him to continue. Despite the voice that told him to stop, he ignored it and continued to push deeper into her.

"You all right?" he asked once he was fully inside of her.

Nodding, she swallowed the lump in her throat. "Yeah."

"I'm not hurting you, am I?"

She shook her head. "No. It doesn't exactly hurt like it first did. It's just…really uncomfortable."

He smiled softly. "First time's always uncomfortable. It gets better after a few more times."

"I hope so."

She blushed, embarrassed that those words had slipped from her lips. Chuckling, he kissed her and parted her mouth with his tongue. As he memorized every nook and cranny of her wet cavern, he rocked his hips against hers, continuing their first sexual experience with each other. Her hands gripped his arms as the uncomfortable feeling increased. She wished it didn't have to be this way. She wanted to enjoy this, but instead, she kinda couldn't wait for it to be over.

Sensing her discomfort, he pulled back and looked into her eyes.

"I'll stop if you want me to."

She shook her head. "It's alright. Really."

"Gabriella…"

"I'm fine, Troy."

He nodded and buried his face in her neck, kissing it softly. Closing her eyes, she could faintly feel the pleasure underneath her feelings of discomfort and tried to concentrate on that instead. After a while, soft moans were elicited from her lips and she truly started to enjoy it.

Moments later, Gabriella experienced her first orgasm and opened her mouth to let out a silent scream that turned into a lust-laced moan. Troy groaned as he spilled his seed into the safety net of the condom and collapsed gently on top of her. Leaning on his arms, he prevented himself from putting all his weight on her and kissed the side of her breast.

Rolling to the side, he laid beside her and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her to him. He leaned his head against her shoulder and took a deep breath.

"You okay?" he asked breathlessly.

She nodded. "Uh-huh." She turned onto her side and faced him.

"I'm sorry if it wasn't exactly the best experience in the world."

Smiling, she placed her hand on his cheek. "You made it the best experience in the world."

He chuckled. "You don't have to lie to me."

"I'm not." He gave her a pointed stare. "Okay, so maybe it was…uncomfortable in the beginning, but it got better and you weren't rough or anything."

"Next time will be better, I promise."

She leaned over and kissed his lips. As they were about to start a fresh make out session, the phone rang and they broke away, giving each other a look of confusion. Sitting up, Troy reached over her and grabbed the phone.

"Hello?"

"_Troy, you and your girl gotta go. I told the couple that booked the room that the cleaning people were still fixing it up so I bought you a little time."_

"Alright. Thanks, Luke." He hung up the phone and sighed, looking down at his girlfriend. "We gotta go."

"Aw, no cuddling."

He chuckled. "Sorry, babe, but the people who booked the room is here."

She nodded and sat up, reaching for her clothes. It took five minutes for them to get dressed and another two to fix up the room. Grabbing her hand, Troy led her out of the room, closing the door behind them. They stopped at the front desk to give Lucas back the key card before leaving the hotel.


	27. Chapter 27

**Learning To Fall**

_by: LunarEclipse360_

**_Disclaimer: ha_**

**A/N: so, writer's block sucks, but I managed to get this chapter completed. My only problem with finishing this chapter was the ending. I wasn't sure how to end it, so I just ended it. Not sure if I like it though. Learning to Fall was fun to write and you guys were great reviewers. Like those before it, Learning To Fall has come to an end.**

**Song of the week: Happy Ending by Mika**

_Chapter 27_

Panting, Gabriella stared at the ceiling with half-lidded eyes and tried to regain her breath. Feeling his lips on her neck, she grinned and ran her hand through his hair. Moments later, she was greeted by his bright blue eyes and her grin turned into a full blown smile. He smiled back before planting a soft kiss on her lips. Breaking away, he slid down a bit and laid his head on her naked chest, listening to her heart beat wildly. A comfortable silence fell over them; their labored breaths the only sound.

Stroking his hair affectionately, she could feel his body relax and knew he was drifting off to sleep. Dropping a kiss to the top of his sweat-soaked hair, she sighed and stared up at the ceiling. After about an hour of not following in her boyfriend's footsteps, Gabriella found herself pulling from his grip. He whimpered and held on tighter to her.

"Troy, I have to use the bathroom." He groaned, but let her go. "Thank you." She got up and rushed to her bathroom.

After doing her business and washing her hands, she rejoined her boyfriend on her bed and he took no time in pulling her against him. Sighing, he buried his face in her neck and kissed it tenderly. She smiled and brushed her fingers over his face. Moving his head up to hers, he placed his lips on hers, caressing them gently. Pulling back, he looked into her eyes.

"I'm gonna miss this."

"So am I," she said, tracing her finger along his jaw bone.

"How much longer do we have before your Mom wakes up?"

She shrugged. "A few hours. Why?"

"I just wanna make sure I leave before she wakes."

"It's not even two in the morning, so you got time."

He sighed and laid his head on the pillow. Gabriella moved closer to him and closed her eyes, enjoying just having him next to her for the time being.

-

-

She wasn't sure when she fell asleep, but when she awoke, she was still wrapped safely in Troy's arms. His eyes were closed shut, signaling to her that he was still fast asleep. She smiled softly as she stared at his peaceful face. She was definitely going to miss waking up to him. Looking behind her, she caught sight of her alarm clock and saw the bright red numbers that read 5:45. Her mother would be up in half an hour.

"Troy," she whispered as she turned back to him. "Troy, baby, wake up." She brushed his hair out of his eyes, causing him to stir.

"Hm?"

"Time to get up."

"Already?"

"Yeah. My Mom will be up soon."

"Ten more minutes."

She giggled softly. "I wish I could give you ten more minutes, but I can't."

"Why not?"

"Because I'm afraid if I do, then I would never want you to leave."

"I'm fine with that."

"So am I, but my Mom won't be."

He sighed. "I don't wanna go yet."

"I don't want you, too, either, but my Mom can't catch us like this."

"Not ready to let her know you're sexually active?"

"Nope."

Shaking his head, he pecked her lips before getting up. It took all her power not to pull him back after seeing him walking around completely naked. Once he was full dressed, he looked at her, a small smile on his face.

"Walk me downstairs?"

"Sure."

He watched as she picked her underwear off the floor and slipped it on before crossing to her dresser to get one of his oversized shirts out. Slipping it on, she walked over to him and laced their fingers.

"Are you taking this with you?" he asked, referring to the shirt.

She shook her head. "I already have one of your other shirts and your jersey packed."

He grinned and pulled her closer as they descended the staircase. Standing in the open doorway, Troy wrapped his arms around her waist and looked into her eyes.

"Are you gonna be at the airport early enough to see me off?" he asked.

"Yeah. Just call me to tell me what gate you're at since you don't seem to remember."

"I told you I didn't check."

Giggling, she wrapped her arms around his neck. "See you in a few hours?"

He nodded. "Of course."

She smiled and he leaned down, planting his lips on hers. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he pulled her closer and tilted his head, deepening the kiss. They pulled away seconds later and stared into each other's eyes. He grinned and kissed her forehead.

"I'll see you later."

"Bye."

He pulled away completely and started down the path to his car. Gabriella watched as he pulled off before going back inside to catch as much sleep as she could.

-

-

"I can't believe this is it," Taylor sighed as she and Gabriella walked arm in arm through the airport, their parents a few feet behind them.

"I know. It's hard to believe that we're actually about to head off to college."

"I'm just glad that we'll still be together for the next four years."

"Same. So why didn't Chad come to say goodbye?"

"I didn't want him to."

"Why not?"

"Because I didn't want to cry anymore. I've basically been crying for the past three days and I'm tired of it. I knew if he came, I would start up all over again."

"Surprisingly…I haven't cried once."

"You haven't?"

She shook her head. "No, and I'm worried."

"Worried about what?"

"That I'll cry at the worst time."

"There's never a worse time to cry."

"If it's in the middle of class, it is."

"That's true. So where's Troy? I thought he would have been here by now."

"He's somewhere around me. He's supposed to call me…" Her phone began to vibrate and she quickly reached into her pocket.

"Speak of the devil."

Gabriella shook her head and grinned as she answer her phone. "Hello?"

"_Where are you?"_

"Is that how you greet your girlfriend?"

He sighed. _"Sorry, babe. I'm just…missing you."_

"I'm missing you, too."

"_See this is why I need to know where you are."_

She rolled her eyes and looked at her surroundings. "I'm around gate A12. Where are you?"

A surprised gasp escaped her lips when she felt two arms wrap around her waist, but she immediately smiled realizing whose arms they were. "Right here," Troy whispered into her ear.

"You know you could give someone a heart attack like that?" she asked as she closed her phone and placed it back in her pocket.

He chuckled. "Sorry." He nuzzled his nose into her neck. "So are you going to come with me to my gate?"

"I'll have to ask my Mom, but sure." She broke away from his grip and walked towards her mother. "Mom, can I walk Troy to his gate?"

Benita smiled and nodded, looking over towards her daughter's boyfriend. "Hi, Troy."

"Hi, Benita."

Gabriella grinned at the familiarity between her mother and her boyfriend. She was glad that her mother finally approved of him and allowed her to continue to see him. Leaving her mother's side, she walked back to Troy and grabbed his hand.

"Shall we?"

He nodded and they started off towards his gate.

-

-

There was still about twenty minutes before his plane boarded and they spent it in silence. Gabriella was quite comfortable sitting in his lap with her head on his chest, listening to his heart beat, so when his flight was called, she refused to move.

"Gabriella, I gotta go."

"I know, but I don't want you to."

He wrapped his arms tighter around her body and kissed the side of her head. "I don't want to go either, but I have to."

She whined, but got up anyway. She kept her eyes on the floor, even as he stood in front of her. Lifting her head with his fingers, he made her look at him, his blue eyes shining with worry.

"You okay?"

She smiled sadly and nodded. "I will be."

Brining his hand to her cheek, he stroked it softly memorizing the feeling of her skin under his fingertips. "See you at Christmas?"

Her smile slipped off her face. "Christmas? What about Thanksgiving?"

"My parents decided since I'm already on the East Coast that we might as well have Thanksgiving with my grandparents in Florida, so that's where I'll be."

"Oh." She turned her eyes away from him.

"Tell you what," he said, bringing her brown hues back to him. "I'll come up for Halloween and we can do something together. Maybe we can even go into the city."

She smiled and nodded. "I'd like that." October was a lot closer than December.

"Flight 323 to Durham, North Carolina is now boarding zone 3."

He sighed. "That's me."

She nodded. "Promise you'll call at least twice a week?"

"I'll do even better than that. I'll call every day."

"Promise?"

"I promise." He kissed her forehead. "I should go." She nodded before his lips found hers in a gentle kiss, his mouth moving sensually against hers as he savored the feeling of her lips, saving it in his memory. He didn't want to pull away, but he had to.

"Bye," he said softly.

"Bye." Her own voice barely above a whisper.

She watched as he picked up his carry-on and walked towards the jet way. She didn't move from her spot even as he disappeared from view. It wasn't until there was no one left that she walked towards the window, her attention on the giant plane on the other side. Placing her hand on the glass, she suddenly remembered that she hadn't gotten a chance to tell him that she loved him, though she was sure he already knew that. But she felt like she needed to.

_He probably has his phone off by now._

From inside her pocket, her phone begun to vibrate before belting out the soft tune of 'Halo.' Confusion passed across her face since the ringtone was for Troy and Troy only. He couldn't possibly be calling her, could he? Fishing out her phone, she looked at the caller ID and her heart fluttered at his name on the screen.

"Hello?"

"_I forgot to tell you something extremely important."_

"What's that?"

"_I love you."_

Her knees buckled, but she caught herself before she fell. The three words always made melt no matter how many times he said it. She loved hearing them slip from his lips, knowing they were only meant for her and that he meant them with every inch of his being. She smiled softly and leant against the wall nearest to her.

"I love you, too."

**A/N: sorry for the ambigious ending**


End file.
